House speaker Nancy Pelosi has ordered Congress to draw up articles of impeachment against Donald Trump over the Ukraine scandal.
“The facts are uncontested. The president abused power for his personal benefit at the expense of national security by withholding military aid and crucial Oval Office meeting in exchange for an announcement of an investigation into his political rival,” she said at a short press conference on Capitol Hill.
Her announcement followed Wednesday’s combative seven-hour House Judiciary Committee hearing at which three academic legal experts agreed that Mr Trump’s apparent attempt to extort a quid pro quo from Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky met the standard for impeachment in a fiery session defined by Republican obstruction and bickering.
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During her weekly press conference, Nancy Pelosi scolded a reporter for asking if she hates the president:
Pelosi scolds reporter who asks if she hates Trump
'As a Catholic, I resent your using the word hate in a sentence that addresses me'Former secretary of State John Kerry has endorsed Joe Biden to be the Democratic nominee in 2020. Here's his statement, provided by the Biden campaign:
“I believe Joe Biden is the President our country desperately needs right now, not because I’ve known Joe so long, but because I know Joe so well. I’ve never before seen the world more in need of someone who on day one can begin the incredibly hard work of putting back together the world Donald Trump has smashed apart. There’s never been a time more urgent for leadership at home that can work for the middle class and tackle existential issues like climate change where we are moving dangerously backwards. Joe is uniquely the person running for president who can beat Donald Trump and get to work on day one at home and in the world with no time to waste.
House minority leader haunted by 2016 broadside on Trump and Putin
California congressman Kevin McCarthy is currently giving his response to Pelosi and has likewise been caught out by a question he disliked from a reporter. "That's embarrassing that you would even ask that," he says after being confronted about a remark he made in 2016 about Trump being in the pocket of Vladimir Putin.
Trump accuses Pelosi of suffering 'nervous fit'
The president is already trolling the speaker over her angry reaction to that question from a right-wing journalist.
House announces next impeachment hearing
The House Judiciary Committee has announced it will be holding a new session on the morning of Monday 9 December to review counsel presentations of the evidence against Donald Trump.
Be there or be square.
Pelosi says Trump's offences 'are about Russia, not Ukraine' and scolds reporter who asks if she hates president
The speaker has been back in front of the cameras to give her weekly press conference. She says her announcement is about the Constitution, not partisan party politics, and says the president's withholding military aid from Ukraine ultimately benefited Russia: "All roads lead to Putin."
She also reacted angrily when one reporter - James Rosen of Sinclair TV - asked her if she "hated" the president.
"I think the president is a coward when it comes to helping our kids who are afraid of gun violence," she said. "I think he is cruel when he doesn't deal with helping our Dreamers. I think he's in denial about the climate crisis."
“I don't hate anybody… As a Catholic, I resent your using the word hate in a sentence that addresses me. I don't hate anyone… So, don't mess with me when it comes to words like that."
Here's the latest.
AOC, Bernie Sanders urge UK to safeguard NHS
Away from impeachment briefly, AOC and Bernie Sanders have told British voters to "cherish and protect" the NHS as Trump and America's drug companies circle it, smelling blood with a general election looming.
How does impeachment work?
Here's a beginner's guide to the process as Nancy Pelosi formally asks the House to get on work on compiling a charge sheet against Trump, answering six key questions.
Kellyanne Conway on the warpath
While all that excitement was going on, Kellyanne Conway has been on the warpath this morning, appearing on Fox and Friends to attack Pamela Karlan over her Barron Trump remark and Justin Trudeau for laughing at Trump.
The Canadian PM is just jealous because her boss "commands a room", she says.
She has also been speaking to reporters, assuring them Team Trump is ready for a trial and defending Rudy Giuliani's call records as featured in Adam Schiff's damning new report.
President rages at Pelosi announcement, warns impeachment will be 'used routinley to attack future presidents'
Here's Trump's inevitable - and rather desperate - response to the Speaker.
Speaker tweets Trump's actions ' in defiance of visions of our founders' as Judiciary Republican lashes out
Pelosi has offered some further explanation for her decision to press ahead with impeachment on Twitter.
Doug Collins, the ranking Republican on the House Judiciary Committee who did so much to frustrate yesterday's proceedings, has this response.
'It's all but certain President Trump will be impeached'
A little more reaction on that dramatic news from the Washington media.
White House: 'Pelosi and the Democrats should be ashamed'
Here's the immediate reaction from the the president's press secretary, as all eyes turn to @realDonaldTrump.
Brad Parscale, Trump's 2020 campaign manager, has also responded with this statement:
"We are less than a year away from Election Day 2020 and Democrats can’t possibly explain to the American people why they want to take the decision of who should be president out of the hands of voters. But impeaching the president has always been their goal, so they should just get on with it so we can have a fair trial in the Senate and expose The Swamp for what it is. Speaker Pelosi, Chairman Schiff and Hunter Biden should testify and then we can get back to the business of our country."
Pelosi: 'Sadly, I am asking our chairmen to proceed with articles of impeachment'
There it is - the investigating House committees will begin drawing up articles of impeachment against America's 45th president Donald Trump.
Nancy Pelosi addressing the nation on impeachment
“In the course of today’s events, is has become necessary to address the president's failure to execute the law", the House speaker says at her press conference underway in DC right now.
Pelosi is giving background on the protections enshired in the US Constitution to protect the American people against a president who breaks the law or assumes to behave like a king.
"The facts are uncontested: the president abused his power for his own political benefit at the expense of our national security," she says.
“The president’s actions are a profound violation of the public trust… and have seriously violated the constitution… his wrongdoing strikes at the very heart of our constitution and the separation of powers… our democracy is at stake, the president leaves us no choice but to act because he is trying to corrupt the election for his own benefit.”
Hillary Clinton says Trump ‘shocked into silence’ by her offer of help
The former Democratic nominee rival has given an interview to controversial New York DJ Howard Stern, himself no stranger to tangling with Trump.
Kate Ng has the highlights of their encounter.
Legal professor hits out at White House order not co-operate with inquiry
Impeachment witness Michael Gerhardt has been on CNN's New Day this morning taking issue with one of fellow professor Jonathan Turley's contentions.
'Do it now, fast': Trump urges Democrats to impeach him
"If you're going to impeach me, do it now, fast," tweets Donald Trump, as he claims yesterday's House Judiciary Committee hearing, in which three out of four constitutional law experts said his actions merited impeachment, was a great success for him.
Video of men easily climbing Trump's border wall goes viral
Never mind hacking through it with household power tools, seems like a windowcleaner's ladder is all you need to get past the president's signature white elephant.
House Homeland Security Committee calls for investigation into awarding of $400m border wall contract
Bennie Thompson, Democratic chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, has asked the Defence Department's inspector general to investigate the awarding of a $400m (£308.5m) contract to North Dakota construction firm Fisher Sand and Gravel, which had been touted by the White House for the job despite its long history of environmental and tax violations.
Thompson's letter said the decision to hire Fisher "raise[s] concerns about the possibility of inappropriate influence". President Trump is known to favour CEO Tommy Fisher since spotting him being interviewed on Fox News.
"I am requesting that you review the award of this contract to ensure that the bid submitted by Fisher Sand and Gravel Co. met the solicitation standards and that USACE made the award in accordance with federal procurement law and regulations," Thompson wrote, alluding to the US Army Corps of Engineers.
Departmental spokeswoman Dwrena Allen said the office is reviewing his request.
Bennie Thompson, Democratic chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, has asked the Defence Department's inspector general to investigate the awarding of a $400m (£308.5m) contract to North Dakota construction firm Fisher Sand and Gravel, which had been touted by the White House for the job despite its long history of environmental and tax violations.
Thompson's letter said the decision to hire Fisher "raise[s] concerns about the possibility of inappropriate influence". President Trump is known to favour CEO Tommy Fisher since spotting him being interviewed on Fox News.
"I am requesting that you review the award of this contract to ensure that the bid submitted by Fisher Sand and Gravel Co. met the solicitation standards and that USACE made the award in accordance with federal procurement law and regulations," Thompson wrote, alluding to the US Army Corps of Engineers.
Departmental spokeswoman Dwrena Allen said the office is reviewing his request.
Here's Conrad Duncan's original story on the awarding of the contract to Fisher.
