US House to draft impeachment charges against Donald Trump, Speaker Nancy Pelosi announces
- Pelosi made the announcement on Thursday after a series of closed door meetings
- Trump “has engaged in abuse of power, undermined our national security and jeopardised the integrity of our elections,” she said
US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told congressional leaders on Thursday to draft articles of impeachment against Donald Trump, saying the president’s abuse of power “leaves us no choice but to act”.
By asking the House Judiciary Committee chairman to draw up the charges, Pelosi, the top congressional Democrat, signalled that a formal impeachment process against the 45th president is all but assured.
With a majority of members in the Democratic-controlled chamber already expressing intent to back the deeply divisive procedure, Trump is likely to become just the third president in US history to be impeached by the House of Representatives, after Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton. Articles of impeachment were drafted against Richard Nixon in 1974, but he resigned before he was impeached.
“Sadly, but with confidence and humility, with allegiance to our founders and a heart full of love for America, today I am asking our chairman to proceed with articles of impeachment,” Pelosi said in a short, sombre televised statement.
Trump “has engaged in abuse of power, undermined our national security and jeopardised the integrity of our elections,” she said, adding that “the president leaves us no choice but to act.”