Jan. 8, 2021
Congressional Democrats, on Friday, weighed impeaching President Donald Trump for a second time, two days after his false claims of election fraud helped encourage a mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol.
Democratic leaders, including House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, called for immediate impeachment proceedings if Vice President Mike Pence and Trump’s cabinet refused to take steps to remove Trump from power.
“The president’s dangerous and seditious acts necessitate his immediate removal from office,’’ they said in a statement on Thursday evening, accusing Trump of inciting an “insurrection”.
As calls for his ouster mounted on Thursday, Trump released a video in which he denounced the violence that left five people dead.
The Republican president came the closest yet to conceding his loss in the Nov. 3 presidential election, promising to ensure a smooth transition to a “new administration”.
President-elect Joe Biden, a Democrat, is set to be sworn in on Jan. 20.
Trump’s words were in stark contrast to his speech on Wednesday when he exhorted a crowd of thousands to descend on the Capitol as Congress met to certify Biden’s election victory.
Rioters stormed the building, overwhelming police and forcing authorities to transport lawmakers to secure locations for their own safety.
A Capitol police officer died from injuries sustained in the assault, the force said late on Thursday.
A woman protester was fatally shot by the authorities, and three people died from medical emergencies.
The FBI offered a reward of up to $50,000 for information on people responsible for placing pipe bombs in the headquarters of the two main U.S. political parties.
The agency released a picture of a suspect wearing gloves and a hoodie, carrying an object.
With less than two weeks left in Trump’s term, it was not clear whether enough time remained to complete the impeachment process.
Pelosi has not announced a decision, though she made clear at a news conference that rank-and-file Democrats in her caucus wanted action following Wednesday’s siege.
If impeached in the House, Trump would theoretically face trial in the Republican-controlled Senate, which is scheduled to be in recess until Jan. 19.
Aides to Mitch McConnell, the majority leader, have not said what he would do if the House approved articles of impeachment.
The Democratic-led House impeached Trump in December 2019 for pressuring the president of Ukraine to investigate Biden, but the Republican-held Senate acquitted him in February 2020.
Only two other presidents in history have been impeached and none has ever been impeached twice.
Democrats will control the Senate after sweeping two runoff elections in Georgia on Tuesday, but the new senators, Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock will not be sworn in until the state certifies the results.
The state deadline to do so is Jan. 22, though it could come sooner.
In Thursday’s video, a flat-toned Trump struck a conciliatory note seldom seen from him during his presidency, calling for “healing”.
As recently as Thursday morning, however, Trump was still claiming the election had been stolen, and he stopped short of acknowledging his loss.
Since November, Trump has baselessly denounced the election results as “rigged” due to widespread fraud.
The Trump campaign and its allies filed dozens of lawsuits challenging the vote counts but almost all were rejected in state and federal courts.
Election officials have said there is no evidence to back Trump’s claims.
Pelosi and Schumer called on Pence and Trump’s Cabinet to invoke the U.S. Constitution’s 25th Amendment, which allows them to strip the president of his powers if he cannot discharge the duties of his office.
Pence opposes the idea, according to an adviser.
At least two Republicans, Maryland Governor Larry Hogan and U.S. Representative Adam Kinzinger said Trump must go.
The Wall Street Journal editorial page, seen as a leading voice of the Republican establishment, on Thursday evening called on Trump to resign.
Several high-ranking Trump administration officials have resigned in protest over the invasion of the Capitol, including two Cabinet members – Elaine Chao, the Transportation Secretary and McConnell’s wife, and Betsy DeVos, the Education Secretary.
At a news conference to introduce his pick for attorney general, Biden blamed Trump for instigating the attack but did not comment on his possible removal.
Congress certified Biden’s election victory early on Thursday after authorities cleared the Capitol.
More than half of House Republicans and eight Republican senators voted to challenge some states’ election results, backing Trump.
The president has isolated himself among a small circle of diehard advisers and lashed out at those he perceives as disloyal, including Pence – whom Trump wanted to try to block Congress from certifying Biden’s win – according to sources.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) has confirmed the death of the officer who was injured during a violent riot in support of President Donald Trump at the Capitol building on Wednesday.
CNN previously reported, citing sources, that an officer involved in dispersing the pro-Trump riot had died, however USCP initially refuted this information.
“At approximately 9:30 p.m. [02:30 GMT on Friday] this evening (January 7, 2021), U.S. Capitol Police Officer Brian D. Sicknick passed away due to injuries sustained while on-duty.
“Officer Sicknick was responding to the riots on Wednesday, Jan. 6, at the U.S. Capitol and was injured while physically engaging with protesters,” the statement said.
This is the fifth victim related to the protests in Washington.
Earlier, it became known that U.S. Air Force veteran Ashley Babbitt, a strong supporter of Trump, had been fatally shot by police during the raid on the Capitol.
Trump’s supporters violently stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday in a bid to prevent Congress from certifying the election results.
The protesters attacked police with metal pipes and chemical irritants, damaged property, seized the inauguration stage and occupied the rotunda inside the Capitol building.
The attack came after Trump urged his supporters to keep fighting to overturn the election results.
On Thursday, Trump said that he was “outraged” by the violent riot at the Capitol and confirmed that he was working to ensure a smooth transition of power to President-elect Joe Biden and his administration.
