The times have found us. The actions taken to date by the President have seriously violated the Constitution. It is for this reason that the House of Representatives is moving forward with an official impeachment inquiry. pic.twitter.com/cHq7zgKJ1g
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) September 24, 2019
The investigation follows allegations that Trump pressured the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, to investigate the son of former Vice-President Joe Biden, the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination to compete for the White House in the 2020 presidential election, in return for millions of dollars in military aid.
If true, Pelosi said this would amount to a “betrayal of his oath of office” and “a betrayal of national security”.
Trump has described the inquiry as both a ‘witch-hunt’ and ‘Presidential Harassment’.
PRESIDENTIAL HARASSMENT!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 24, 2019
A whistleblower from within the US intelligence community lodged a complaint about the conversation, and both The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times reported the complaint on Friday.
Since then pressure has been mounting on Pelosi to instigate an impeachment inquiry.
Earlier this morning the President said he had obtained permission to release the transcript from the conversation.
Secretary of State Pompeo recieved permission from Ukraine Government to release the transcript of the telephone call I had with their President. They don’t know either what the big deal is. A total Witch Hunt Scam by the Democrats!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 24, 2019
The U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has criticised the inquiry and voiced his support for Donald Trump.
“It simply confirms that House Democrats’ priority is not making life better for the American people, but their nearly three-year-old fixation on impeachment,” he said in a statement.
My statement on Speaker Nancy Pelosi's impeachment inquiry announcement:https://t.co/6dtEHGTEMV pic.twitter.com/8zYrYD3Bhn
— Leader McConnell (@senatemajldr) September 24, 2019
The US Senate voted unanimously to call for the release of the whistleblower complaint about the call.
An impeachment inquiry will take time and is politically risky. As the ABC’s North American correspondent, Conor Duffy, said earlier today: “As it plays out, it carries huge political risk for Democrats. Polls have consistently shown American voters don’t like impeachment.”
The transcript, expected to be released on Wednesday in America, will shed some light on whether the Democrats have acted appropriately.
No one is above the law—not even the president of the United States. Congress has the constitutional authority and responsibility to hold the president accountable. This is not about politics, this is about principle. We must begin impeachment proceedings.
— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) September 24, 2019
Trump’s re-election campaign has already jumped on the inquiry to mobilise fundraising efforts.