United States President Donald Trump on Friday said it was unfair that he was being impeached when he had “done absolutely nothing wrong”. He tweeted and retweeted posts 123 times during the day.
Earlier in the day, the House Judiciary Committee had approved two impeachment charges against Trump, setting up the process for a full House of Representatives vote. The two articles of impeachment – abuse of power and obstruction of the Congress – are likely to be voted on next week.
“The Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats have become the Party of Hate,” Trump tweeted, referring to the Democratic Party, which brought the impeachment motion against him. “They are so bad for our Country!”
He also described the impeachment as a hoax and politically motivated. “It is a sham,” said the president. “Nothing was done wrong. Zero was done wrong. I think it is a horrible thing to be using the tool of impeachment, which is supposed to be used in an emergency. And it would seem many, many, many years apart.”
Trump is the fourth president in the United States’ history to face impeachment charges, according to BBC. Democrats and Republicans voted along party lines with 23 to 17 votes for the two impeachment articles.
The president is accused of obstructing Congress by not cooperating with the investigation of the House. Democratic Party politicians said that Trump had “betrayed the nation” as he had acted “corruptly”.
Allegations against Trump include that the president tried to coerce his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden in a corruption case. Joe Biden is a frontrunner for the Democratic Party’s nomination for the presidency.
Trump allegedly tried to use military aid sought by Ukraine, which is facing Russian military aggression, as leverage to put pressure on Zelensky. The House Intelligence Committee has already concluded that Trump abused his power.
A Senate hearing to decide whether the United States president will be removed from office is expected early next year, The Guardian reported.
Following the vote on Friday, the White House called the actions a “desperate charade” with Trump’s Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham saying that the committee’s approval of the impeachment articles “has reached its shameful end”, according to AFP. “The President looks forward to receiving in the Senate the fair treatment and due process which continues to be disgracefully denied to him by the House,” Grisham said.
Trump and the White House have consistently alleged that the impeachment is politically motivated, and the president has called it a “witch hunt”.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!