WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Jan. 13, 2021, President Donald J. Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives in a 232-197 vote – becoming the first Commander-in-Chief to be impeached twice.
On Dec. 18, 2019, the House passed two articles of impeachment: abuse of power and obstruction of congress. However, weeks later, a trial in the Senate did not yield the necessary 67 votes in favor of impeachment conviction to remove him from office.
This time, the charge is incitement of insurrection, and was virtually guaranteed to go through, as the Democrats who filed the charge hold a majority in that chamber. However, unlike the previous impeachment, this time the Democrats got 10 votes on the Republican side in favor of Trump’s removal. Despite the outrage over last week’s insurrection at the Capitol, some Republicans did speak against the impeachment.
As with the previous impeachment, a trial will be held in the Senate, and 67 votes are still needed for an impeachment conviction. Current Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has said that he would not reconvene the Senate in any rush to start the process before Inauguration Day. Once the new Senate is installed, McConnell would likely no longer be Majority Leader, as the GOP would not have a majority.
While the situation would be different – as Trump could not be removed from office, being that he would no longer be President – there are still consequences if he is convicted. Trump could lose his pension and secret service protection, but most of all, he could be barred from ever seeking public office again.
