House Democrats announced that they will bring two articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump in a news conference on Tuesday.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, flanked by the chairs of six House committees, announced that the articles of impeachment would charge Trump with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.
"Today, in service to our duty to the Constitution and to our country, the House Committee on the Judiciary is introducing two articles of impeachment, charging the president of the U.S., Donald J. Trump, with committing high crimes and misdemeanors,” Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., said at the news conference.
“It is an impeachable offense for the president to exercise the powers of his public office to obtain improper personal benefit while ignoring or injuring the national interest. That is exactly what President Trump did,” he explained. "President Trump engaged in unprecedented, categorical and indiscriminate defiance of the impeachment inquiry. This gives rise to the second article of impeachment for obstruction of Congress.”
Schiff: we can’t let Trump cheat in another election:
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff said that it was important to move forward with the articles of impeachment as soon as possible.
"The evidence of the president's misconduct is overwhelming and uncontested,” he said.
"The argument, 'Why don't you just wait' amounts to this: 'Why don't you just let him cheat in one more election?'” Schiff said. “'Why not let him cheat just one more time? Why not let him have foreign help just one more time?' That is what that argument amounts to."
"The president's oath of office appears to mean very little to him,” Schiff added, “but the articles put forward today will give us a chance to show that we will defend the Constitution and that our oath means something to us."
Trump declares innocence:
“To Impeach a President who has proven through results, including producing perhaps the strongest economy in our country’s history, to have one of the most successful presidencies ever, and most importantly, who has done NOTHING wrong, is sheer Political Madness!” Trump tweeted.
“Nadler just said that I ‘pressured Ukraine to interfere in our 2020 Election.’ Ridiculous, and he knows that is not true,” he continued. “Both the President & Foreign Minister of Ukraine said, many times, that there ‘WAS NO PRESSURE.’ Nadler and the Dems know this, but refuse to acknowledge!”
“Shifty Schiff, a totally corrupt politician, made up a horrible and fraudulent statement, read it to Congress, and said those words came from me,” he added. “He got caught, was very embarrassed, yet nothing happened to him for committing this fraud. He’ll eventually have to answer for this!”
