The House Judiciary Committee, voting along party lines, on Friday approved articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump, charging he abused his power and obstructed Congress.
Both measures will be voted on by the full House, likely on Wednesday, and come after weeks of damaging testimony against Trump.
The votes come after the committee spent 14 hours on Thursday debating the articles and debating amendments offered by Republicans that sought to change the resolution. Lawmakers had expected to cast votes on the measures at the end of the night, but Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., abruptly recessed the markup after 11 p.m. ET, catching Republicans off-guard, who expressed outrage at the surprise move.
NBC:
As soon as the House votes to impeach President Trump — which is likely to happen next week — it is no longer in charge of the process. The situation then goes over to the Republican-controlled Senate, where Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. will preside but the GOP otherwise can control much of the length and substance of the process.
And Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is indicating he’ll endeavor to give the White House whatever kind of trial it wants.
“Everything I do during this, I’m coordinating with the White House counsel,” McConnell said. “There will be no difference between the president’s position and our position as to how to handle this to the extent that we can.”
The Washington Post:
Watch McConnell’s full interview below:
