The arguments are ready, the evidence is "overwhelming". The Democratic representatives responsible for the investigation of the Ukrainian affair published their long-awaited report on Tuesday (3 December). The text accuses US President Donald Trump of abuse of power for soliciting Ukraine's interference in the 2020 presidential election. "The founding fathers have prescribed a remedy when a chief executive places his personal interests above those of the country: impeachment, "add the authors of this 300-page document.
The Intelligence Committee of the House of Representatives, the spearhead of the investigation opened in September, also states in its report that the US president has undermined national security. More specifically, Donald Trump is accused of having sought to condition the provision of military aid to Ukraine and a visit to the White House of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the opening of an investigation into the activities in Ukraine the son of Joe Biden, his potential opponent in 2020, and on the role of Kiev in the 2016 election.
"President Trump's ploy has subverted US diplomacy towards Ukraine and undermined our national security in favor of two politically-motivated investigations that could help his presidential re-election campaign," he wrote. The report.
Obstruction of the investigation
The Democrats also blame Donald Trump for obstructing their investigation by blocking the transmission of documents and the testimony of his senior advisers but also by vain attempts to prevent further testimony and intimidate witnesses. "Donald Trump is the first president in the history of the United States to seek to completely block an investigation for impeachment by the House of Representatives," reads.
White House spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham denounced a "mock biased procedure" that did not provide any evidence against Donald Trump. "This report reflects nothing but their frustrations," she said. In their own investigation report, released Monday evening, the Republicans on their side bleached the president: "The items presented do not prove any of the accusations of Democrats."
Present in London for a NATO summit, Donald Trump on Tuesday accused the Democrats of conducting a survey looking like "witch hunt" and he once again claimed that Joe Biden is called to testify.
Unlikely destitution
The Intelligence Committee is scheduled to meet in the evening in Washington for a vote on its findings. The file will then be forwarded to the Judicial Affairs Committee. It will start Wednesday the legal debate to determine whether the allegations against the President justify his impeachment. Four jurists will detail at a public hearing the grounds for dismissal cited in the US Constitution: acts of "treason, corruption or other crimes and major crimes".
The House of Representatives, with a Democratic majority, should approve in plenary the indictment of the president. It will then return to the Senate, for its part dominated by the Republicans, to organize a trial after which a two-thirds majority of the present will be required to declare Donald Trump guilty and dismiss him. An unlikely prospect to date.
With AFP and Reuters