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- Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi formally signed an article of impeachment against President Donald Trump for his role in inciting an insurrection.
- Ten House Republicans voted to impeach Trump, highlighting growing support among the GOP to hold the president accountable.
- “I have not made a final decision on how I will vote and I intend to listen to the legal arguments when they are presented to the Senate,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell wrote on Wednesday.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.
Speaking at the lectern stolen by a rioter during the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi formally signed an article of impeachment against President Donald Trump for his role in inciting the insurrection.
Trump has become the first president to be impeached twice.
After introducing Lead Manager Rep. Jamie Raskin and impeachment managers Reps. Diana DeGette, David Cicilline, Joaquin Castro, Eric Swalwell, Ted Lieu, Stacey Plaskett, Joe Neguse, and Madeleine Dean, Pelosi said they, “did not think they would have this responsibility a week ago.”
“No one is above the law and President Donald Trump is a clear and present danger to this country. We honored our oath of office to protect and defend the constitution,” Pelosi said.
“And now I sadly, heartbroken over what this means to the country, over a president who incited insurrection, will sign the article of impeachment,” Pelosi said, symbolically signing the article.
Pelosi and the impeachment managers left the room without taking questions from the press, including from one reporter in the pool who asked for her thoughts on Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's decision to delay the impeachment trial until after President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration.
On Wednesday, the House voted 232 to 197 to impeach Trump, and the resolution will now be taken up by the Senate, where Trump can be convicted for his actions and barred from running for public office in the future.
"I have not made a final decision on how I will vote and I intend to listen to the legal arguments when they are presented to the Senate," McConnell wrote on Wednesday.
Ten House Republicans voted to impeach Trump, highlighting growing support among the GOP to potentially hold the President accountable.
McConnell also said that lawmakers should spend the next week "completely focused on facilitating a safe inauguration and an orderly transfer of power." He insinuated that Trump's Senate trial would realistically have to begin after Biden's inauguration- a timeline when Democrats will control the senate-given the timelines of past impeachment trials in the Senate.
In a video statement released Wednesday after being impeached for the second time, Trump made no mention of the impeachment.