Trump stays in office, Senate acquits him of impeachment charges
What's the story
A bitterly fought impeachment trial that was launched to remove Donald Trump from the office ended on Wednesday with the US President emerging unscathed and victorious. The Senate acquitted him on two articles of impeachment — obstruction of Congress and abuse of power. Trump is the third US President to be impeached by House of Representatives but acquitted in Senate trial.
Acquittal
Republicans stayed together, helped Trump escape
To remove the sitting US President from office, a two-third majority of the 67 Senators was required. Despite presented with evidence that Trump sought Ukraine's help to get his political opponent Joe Biden investigated, Republicans stayed together. The first charge, abuse of power, was defeated by a 52-48 tally and the other one by 53 to 47 votes.
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Trump is not guilty as charged: Supreme Court Chief Justice
Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, who presided over the trial, said, "Two-thirds of the senators present not having pronounced him guilty, the Senate adjudges that respondent Donald John Trump, President of the United States, is not guilty as charged."
Unprecedented vote
Republican Mitt Romney voted against President of his own party
Notably, the final day of Trump's trial was laced with drama and a bit of surprise. Mitt Romney, the Republican from Utah, became the first-ever Senator in the history to vote against the President of his own party. Romney, a long-time critic of Trump, voted in favor of his impeachment on article 1 (power abuse) but held him not guilty on the second accusation.
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President is guilty of flagrant abuse of public trust: Romney
Romney said, "I support a great deal of what the president has done. But my promise before God to apply impartial justice required that I put my personal feelings and political biases aside. The president is guilty of flagrant abuse of public trust."
Accusations
Trump's nightmare began after whistleblower complained against him
To recall, the formal impeachment inquiry was launched by Democrats in September, a month after an anonymous whistleblower accused Trump of seeking help from a foreign country to win the upcoming 2020 election. The deposition and fact-finding inquiries lasted two months. A couple of White House representatives testified before Congress, defying Trump. On December 18, 2019, he was formally impeached in a historic vote.
Arguments
Democrats said Trump didn't deserve to remain in office
During the trial, Republicans argued that if Trump is, in fact, impeached, it would snatch liberty from American voters on whether to send the President to the White House, again or not. But Democrats continued to claim that Trump would find a way to influence elections. Democrat Kamala Harris said when framers wrote the Constitution they didn't think someone like Trump would be elected.
Numbers
Both Republicans and Democrats were in for a surprise
Democrats' hopes were doused in the trial. They expected that like Romney, moderate Republicans, Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, would vote to convict Trump. But they didn't. Likewise, Republicans were banking that three Democrats, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Doug Jones of Alabama, would vote for his acquittal, but they stayed with their part.
Reactions
Press Secretary called trial "sham"; Pelosi differed
Celebrating the outcome, Press secretary Stephanie Grisham called Romney "one failed Republican presidential candidate". "Today, the sham impeachment attempt concocted by Democrats ended in the full vindication and exoneration of President Donald J. Trump," Grisham said. However, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, whose turbulent relationship with Trump was on full display at the State Of The Union Address, said he has been "impeached for life".
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According to Pelosi, Republicans have normalized lawlessness
"Today, the president and Senate Republicans have normalized lawlessness and rejected the system of checks and balances of our constitution. The president will boast that he has been acquitted. There can be no acquittal without a trial, and there is no trial without witnesses, documents and evidence," Pelosi said.
Twitter Post
Acquitted, Trump called the trial a "hoax"
I will be making a public statement tomorrow at 12:00pm from the @WhiteHouse to discuss our Country’s VICTORY on the Impeachment Hoax!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 5, 2020