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A4 U.S. NEWS
Wednesday 25 september 2019

Pelosi orders impeachment probe: ‘No one is above the law’

By LISA MASCARO, MARY seemed likely to drag on
CLARE JALONICK and MI- for months.
CHAEL BALSAMO But details of Trump’s deal-
Associated Press ings with Ukraine prompted
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats to quickly shift
House Speaker Nancy Pe- course. By the time Pelosi
losi launched a formal im- addressed the nation on
peachment inquiry against Tuesday, about two-thirds
President Donald Trump on of House Democrats had
Tuesday, yielding to mount- announced moving toward
ing pressure from fellow impeachment probes.
Democrats and plunging a The burden will likely now
deeply divided nation into shift to Democrats to make
an election year clash be- the case to a scandal-
tween Congress and the weary public. In a highly
commander in chief. polarized Congress, an im-
The probe focuses partly peachment inquiry could
on whether Trump abused simply showcase how
his presidential powers and clearly two sides can dis-
sought help from a foreign agree when shown the
government to undermine same evidence rather than
Democratic foe Joe Biden approach consensus.
and help his own reelec- Building toward this mo-
tion. Pelosi said such ac- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif., reads a statement announcing a formal impeachment ment, the president has re-
tions would mark a “be- inquiry into President Donald Trump, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019. peatedly been stonewall-
trayal of his oath of office” Associated Press ing requests for documents
and declared: “No one is sified whistleblower com- the foundation of our de- friendly and totally appro- and witness interviews in
above the law.” plaint about Trump burst mocracy.” priate call,” Trump said. the variety of ongoing in-
The impeachment inquiry, into the open and momen- At issue are Trump’s actions Trump has sought to impli- vestigations.
after months of investiga- tum shifted toward an im- with Ukraine. In a summer cate Biden and his son in After Pelosi’s Tuesday an-
tions by House Democrats peachment probe. phone call with Ukrainian the kind of corruption that nouncement, the president
of the Trump administration, For months, the Democrat- President Volodymyr Zel- has long plagued Ukraine. and his campaign team
sets up the party’s most di- ic leader has tried calming enskiy , he is said to have Hunter Biden served on quickly released a series
rect and consequential the push for impeachment, asked for help investigating the board of a Ukrainian of tweets attacking Demo-
confrontation with the pres- saying the House must in- former Vice President Biden gas company at the same crats, including a video of
ident, injects deep uncer- vestigate the facts and let and his son Hunter. In the time his father was leading presidential critics like the
tainty into the 2020 election the public decide. The new days before the call, Trump the Obama administra- speaker and Rep. Ilhan
campaign and tests anew drive was led by a group ordered advisers to freeze tion’s diplomatic dealings Omar discussing impeach-
the nation’s constitutional of moderate Democratic $400 million in military aid with Kyiv. Though the tim- ment. It concluded: “While
system of checks and bal- lawmakers from political for Ukraine — prompting ing raised concerns among Democrats ‘Sole Focus’ is
ances. swing districts , many of speculation that he was anti-corruption advocates, fighting Trump, President
Trump, who thrives on com- them with national security holding out the money as there has been no evi- Trump is fighting for you.”
bat, has all but dared Dem- backgrounds and serving leverage for information on dence of wrongdoing by Senate Majority Leader
ocrats to take this step, in Congress for the first time. the Bidens. either the former vice presi- Mitch McConnell said Pe-
confident that the specter The freshmen, who largely Trump has denied that dent or his son. losi’s well-known “efforts
of impeachment led by the represent districts previ- charge, but acknowl- While the possibility of im- to restrain her far-left con-
opposition party will bolster ously held by Republicans edged he blocked the peachment has hung over ference have finally crum-
rather than diminish his po- where Trump is popular, risk funds, later released. Trump for many months, bled.”
litical support. their own re-elections but The Trump-Ukraine phone the likelihood of a probe Pelosi has for months re-
Meeting with world leaders say they could no longer call is part of the whis- had faded after special sisted calls for impeach-
at the United Nations, he stand idle. Amplifying their tleblower’s complaint, counsel Robert Mueller’s ment from her restive cau-
previewed his defense in call were longtime leaders, though the administration Trump-Russia investigation cus, warning that it would
an all-caps tweet: “PRESI- including Rep. John Lewis has blocked Congress from ended without a clear di- backfire against the party
DENTIAL HARRASSMENT!” of Georgia, the civil rights getting other details of the rective for lawmakers. unless there was a ground-
Pelosi’s brief statement, de- icon often considered the report, citing presidential Since then, the House com- swell of public support.
livered without dramatic conscience of House Dem- privilege. Trump has au- mittees have revisited as- That groundswell hasn’t
flourish but in the frame- ocrats. thorized the release of a pects of the Mueller probe occurred, but some of the
work of a constitutional “Now is the time to act,” transcript of the call, which while also launching new more centrist lawmakers
crisis, capped a frenetic said Lewis, in an address to is to be made public on inquiries into Trump’s busi- are facing new pressure
week-long stretch on Capi- the House. “To delay or to Wednesday . nesses and various admin- back home for not having
tol Hill as details of a clas- do otherwise would betray “You will see it was a very istration scandals that all acted on impeachment.q