26 September 2019 - Nancy Pelosi announces formal impeachment inquiry of Trump
Pelosi calls out 'President's betrayal of his oath of office' in announcing formal impeachment inquiry
Dana Bash, Manu Raju, Sunlen Serfaty and Clare Foran (CNN, 24/09/2019)
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday announced a formal impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump, a dramatic and historic move that comes as the President faces outrage over reports that he pressured a foreign leader in an effort to target a political rival.
The announcement marks the most direct step taken by the House Democratic leader to embrace impeachment proceedings and is a significant escalation in the fight between House Democrats and the President.
"Today, I am announcing the House of Representatives moving forward with an official impeachment inquiry," Pelosi said in a brief speech in the Capitol, adding, "The President must be held accountable. No one is above the law."
Whistleblower raised alarm over White House handling of Ukraine call records: report
Rebecca Klar (The Hill, 25/09/2019)
The whistleblower complaint about President Trump’s call with Ukraine raises concerns over how the White House handled records of the conversation with the foreign leader, The New York Times reported Wednesday, citing two people briefed on the complaint.
The whistleblower identified multiple White House officials as witnesses to Trump’s alleged misconduct who could corroborate the complaint, according to the people who spoke to the Times.
A White House spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
How impeachment works
Aaron Steckelberg, Harry Stevens, Bonnie Berkowitz and Tim Meko (The Washington Post, 25/09/2019)
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) announced Tuesday that the House would begin impeachment proceedings against President Trump, but there are many steps between the first step of launching an impeachment inquiry and the final step, which could be removing him from office.
According to the Constitution, the House can impeach a president — and other civil officers, such as federal judges — if lawmakers believe they have committed “Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” What constitutes a high crime or misdemeanor is open to interpretation, but an abuse of power could fit the bill. Pelosi’s announcement means an investigation will look into whether actions by Trump rise to that level.
8 reasons why impeaching Donald Trump is a big risk for the Democrats (and 3 reasons why it’s not)
Timothy J. Lynch (The Conversation, 25/09/2019)
US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has announced the Democrats have begun a formal impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump over allegations he tried to pressure the Ukrainian president to investigate a Democratic political rival.
And now the transcript of the phone call has been released, Democrats have said the evidence was even more incriminating than they expected.