House Majority Leader: We intend to raise accountability to Congress this week

Trump faces isolation measure for the second time due to the storming of "Capitol"

The impeachment session of the US House of Representatives at the Washington Capitol Building.

ABA

Yesterday, the US House of Representatives discussed legislation to impeach outgoing President Donald Trump for the second time during his term.

Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, the second most important Democrat in the House, said the House intends to lift Trump's impeachment provisions to the Senate as soon as possible this week.

In detail, the US Congress discussed yesterday a second impeachment measure against Trump on charges of encouraging the attack on the Capitol Building in Washington, which killed five and raised a major shock in America and the world.

The vote on the indictment took place at 20:00 GMT in the House of Representatives, where the Democrats occupy the majority of the House.

It will lead to the opening of a formal impeachment measure for the 45th president of the United States, who will become the first president to face charges twice in Congress.

Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, the second most important Democrat in the House, said the House intends to lift Trump's impeachment provisions to the Senate as soon as possible this week.

The Council first voted to define the rules for debate.

Its approval would pave the way for a vote at a later date to pass an accountability clause accusing Trump of fomenting the insurgency in a speech last week.

Steny Hoyer said the House intends to lift Trump's impeachment provisions to the Senate as soon as possible this week.

"There is no reason why we should not send it this week ... we intend to do so," he added in an interview with (MSNBC), referring to discussions with Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

A majority vote in the House in favor of impeachment would automatically lead to the president being tried in the Senate, which is still controlled by Republicans, although it is unclear whether such a trial will take place in time to drive Trump out of the White House.

During a meeting to lay down the rules for the impeachment vote, Democratic Representative David Cecilin told the House Rules Committee that the impeachment campaign had the support of 217 lawmakers, enough to indict Trump.

Pelosi appointed, the day before yesterday, nine directors of the impeachment process, who will present the House case during the trial that may take place in the Senate, but it is not clear how quickly such a trial will be held if the House of Representatives votes in favor of impeachment.

McConnell said the trial could not begin until the board returned from recess on January 19.

But House Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters that the Senate could be called to hear the issue.

Republican lawmakers who oppose the impeachment effort said Democrats are exaggerating, given that Trump is about to leave office.

Democrats went ahead with the impeachment vote, after Vice President Mike Pence refused yesterday evening their request to activate the 25th amendment to the constitution to impeach Trump.

"I do not think that such a measure is in the interest of our nation, or is consistent with our constitution," Pence said in a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Despite this, the House of Representatives passed a resolution asking Pence to formally take action.

The decision was issued by a majority of 223 votes, compared to 205. And there were more signs of Trump's decline in control of his party, with at least five Republican lawmakers saying that they would vote in favor of impeaching him for a second time, in an event that had never been before an American president.

Representative Liz Cheney, who holds the third-highest Republican office in the House of Representatives, said Trump "gathered this crowd ... and ignited this attack" on the Congress building on January 6.

"I will vote to impeach the president," Cheney, the daughter of former Republican Vice President George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, said in a statement.

Four other Republican lawmakers, Jimmy Herrera Buettler, John Katko, Adam Kinzinger and Fred Upton, said they would also vote in favor of impeachment.

Contrary to regular procedure, Republican leaders in the House did not urge their lawmakers to vote against impeachment of Trump, saying it was a matter of everyone's conscience.

The New York Times reported that the Republican majority leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, was reportedly happy with the Democrats' campaign to hold Trump accountable, in a new indication that the Republican Party is looking to abandon him after the congressional attack.

If the House passes impeachment of Trump, he will be tried by the Senate to determine whether he is guilty.

Two-thirds of the Senate must agree to convict him, which would require the approval of at least 17 Republicans of the 100 senators in favor of a conviction.

Democrats could also use the trial to vote to prevent Trump from running again.

Trump is the first president in American history to twice face an indictment in Congress.

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Republicans announced their support for impeachment of Trump ... including Liz Cheney, daughter of the former vice president.

Allow the National Guard in Washington to carry weapons

Members of the National Guard deployed in the streets of Washington began to carry out armed patrols, at dawn yesterday, in a major shift from the position of officials prior to the inauguration of Joe Biden as President of the United States.

Soldiers were mobilized mainly to provide logistical support, mostly to Washington police.

And on Monday, the Pentagon National Guard official, Gen. Daniel Hukanson, said they were not yet allowed to carry weapons.

Hukanson added that authorizing the guards to deploy on a law enforcement mission, during which they are permitted to carry weapons with the authority to make arrests, would be the "last option" if the situation got out of control.

Washington - AFP

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