By: RJ ThomasOn September 24, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi began the formal impeachment process of President Donald Trump. In light of a whistleblower coming forward, Pelosi spoke at a press conference, saying, “The actions taken to date by the president have seriously violated the Constitution… [President Trump] must be held accountable - no one is above the law.” She went on to say that these actions have shown a “betrayal of his oath of office, betrayal of our national security and betrayal of the integrity of our elections.” President Trump took to Twitter to respond to Pelosi’s announcement, writing, “Such an important day at the United Nations, much work and so much success, and the Democrats purposely had to ruin and demean it with more breaking news Witch Hunt garbage. So bad for our country!”
many, this came as a shock due to unease in the Democratic party on the political ramifications an impeachment might have. This worry seemed to be placed aside when a whistleblower stepped forward with a grievance about a phone call that occurred between Mr. Trump and the president of Ukraine. The allegations laid against Mr. Trump by the whistleblower at present is that on a call with the president of Ukraine, Mr. Trump pressured him into investigating former Vice President Joe Biden and his son and the son’s involvement on the board of a Ukrainian gas company. This call raised eyebrows due to its occurrence only days after the Trump administration froze over 391 million dollars in aid to Ukraine. Mr. Trump has confirmed certain parts of the call but continues to insist that he acted appropriately. Since that confirmation, Mr. Trump has said that he will make a transcript of the call available, but the Democrats, geared for impeachment, have demanded the entire whistleblower complaint, as well as any documents that outline other dealings between the White House and Ukraine. The whistleblower has come forward, wanting to testify in front of lawmakers, even hoping to share a redacted version of the complaint; the Trump administration, however, has declared that they will not cooperate in the impeachment proceedings. Pat A. Cipollone, the White House counsel, cited, “Your unprecedented actions have left the president with no choice. In order to fulfill his duties to the American people, the Constitution, the executive branch and all future occupants of the office of the presidency, President Trump and his administration cannot participate in your partisan and unconstitutional inquiry under these circumstances.” This was as sudden and unexpected turn after the president told lawmakers, “I always cooperate” and “we’ll work together.” Pelosi responded, telling the country, “The White House should be warned that continued efforts to hide the truth… will be regarded as further evidence of obstruction.” Mr. Trump’s resistance to the inquiry has had its intended effect, causing further investigation to proceed much slower and more painstakingly. However, the House has not been at a complete loss for information. At present, Mr. Trump’s personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, is an object of interest for the House. Giuliani’s affiliation with Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, two associates of his who were arrested on counts of campaign finance violation, calls his role into question. Though anything has yet to be determined on the subject, Giuliani tells sources that the investigation is a “political attack.” Despite the White House’s stance against cooperation, former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch, testified before Congress in spite of them. Her removal raised questions among the House, and during her 10-hour testimony, she lent evidence towards the case of Giuliani.
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