DC update: The full story of the House impeachment vote (including statements from NC reps)

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House voted to impeach President Donald Trump Wednesday night, making him the third president to be impeached in U.S. history.

Trump was impeached on largely party line votes on charges that he abused power and obstructed Congress. The charges surround allegations that Trump improperly pressured Ukraine’s president to investigate his political rival in an effort to interfere with the 2020 U.S. presidential election.

No House Republicans voted to adopt either impeachment article. Two House Democrats voted against both articles of impeachment — Reps. Collin Peterson of Minnesota and Jeff Van Drew of New Jersey. Van Drew was reportedly planning to switch parties to become a Republican. Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) voted yes on the first article but against the obstruction of Congress article. Hawaii Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard voted “present” on both articles.

North Carolina’s delegation voted entirely along party lines.  Democratic Reps. Alma Adams, G.K. Butterfield and David Price voted in support of both impeachment articles. Republicans Dan Bishop, Ted Budd, Virginia Foxx, George Holding, Richard Hudson, Patrick McHenry, Mark Meadows, Greg Murphy, David Rouzer, and Mark Walker voted against both articles.

The vote came after a lengthy and heated debate on the House floor, as Democrats warned that Trump had trampled on the U.S. Constitution, while his GOP defenders accused the House majority of manufacturing a case for impeachment due to their disdain for Trump’s policies.

“The founders’ great fear of a rogue or corrupt president is the very reason why they enshrined impeachment in the Constitution,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said on the House floor ahead of the vote. “If we do not act now, we would be derelict in our duty. It is tragic that the president’s reckless actions make impeachment necessary. He gave us no choice.”

Only two other presidents had previously been impeached by the House: Andrew Johnson in 1868 and Bill Clinton in 1998. Both of those presidents were acquitted by the Senate.

Trump also appears to be headed for acquittal in the GOP-led Senate. A trial, in which House Democrats will argue their case before the upper chamber of Congress, is expected to begin next month.

Some senators have been cautious about stating whether they’ll vote to remove Trump from office, arguing that they’ll be jurors in the trial and don’t want to prejudge the outcome. But not Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).

McConnell told reporters Tuesday that he is “not at all impartial” on impeachment and that it is a “political process.”

As lawmakers prepared to vote on Wednesday, Trump wrote on Twitter: “SUCH ATROCIOUS LIES BY THE RADICAL LEFT, DO NOTHING DEMOCRATS. THIS IS AN ASSAULT ON AMERICA, AND AN ASSAULT ON THE REPUBLICAN PARTY!!!!”

Trump held a campaign rally in Battle Creek, Mich., on Wednesday night. “By the way, it doesn’t really feel like we’re being impeached, the country is doing better than ever before. We did nothing wrong and we have tremendous support in the Republican Party like never before,” Trump said, according to The Washington Post.

Democrats delivered sharper rebukes of the president, arguing that failing to impeach Trump would set a precedent that other presidents could invite foreign interference in U.S. elections.

“I know the president said that he can get away with anything he wants to. I come today to tell you that no, he cannot, because no one is above the law and he shall be held accountable,” said Rep. Val Demings (D-Fla.), who was involved in the House investigation of the Ukraine scandal.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said that in his nearly 40 years in the House under six presidential administrations, he never expected to “encounter such an obvious wrongdoing by a president of the United States. Nor did I expect to witness such a craven rationalization of presidential actions which have put our national security at risk, undermined the integrity of our elections and defied the constitutional authority of the Congress to conduct oversight.”

Republicans, meanwhile, spent the debate accusing their Democratic colleagues of pursuing a political vendetta against the president, pointing frequently to statements Democrats had made supporting impeachment before the Ukraine investigation was launched.

“Why do we keep calling this a solemn occasion, when you’ve been wanting to do this ever since [Trump]  was elected?” said Georgia Rep. Doug Collins, the top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee.

“The president has been driving these guys crazy because he’s getting things done,” said Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, the top Republican on the House Oversight and Reform Committee. “When you drain the swamp, the swamp fights back. They started attacking the president before the election even.”

Democrats vehemently denied GOP attacks that they were pursuing impeachment because they hate Trump’s policies or dislike him personally.

“I don’t hate the president, but I love my country and I have no other choice,” said Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.). “Voting for these articles of impeach is the only moral course of action, the only way to honor our oath of office. I have no doubt that the votes I cast today will stand the test of time.”

One independent congressman, Michigan Rep. Justin Amash, sided with Democrats to vote for both articles of impeachment. Amash, who helped found the conservative House Freedom Caucus, left the GOP earlier this year after calling for Trump’s impeachment.

Trump’s “actions reflect precisely the type of conduct the framers of the Constitution intended to remedy through the power of impeachment, and it is our duty to impeach him,” Amash said Wednesday on the House floor.

Here are some selected quotes from North Carolina representatives:

Rep. David Rouzer: “Nowhere in the Constitution does it say that personal disdain is grounds for impeachment.”

Rep. David Price:  “The moment our founders anticipated in establishing the power of impeachment has arrived. The evidence is clear: President Trump abused his power by asking a vulnerable foreign leader to investigate both his political rival and a baseless Russian conspiracy theory while withholding congressionally appropriated defense aid and a coveted White House visit. He then blocked a congressional investigation into these abuses. These abuses threaten the integrity of our elections, they corrupt our diplomacy and they undermine national security.”

Rep. G. K. Butterfield: “Since taking office nearly three years ago, President Trump has consistently and intentionally divided this country. He has consistently encouraged foreign actors to interfere in our elections. He has thumbed his nose … at the legislative branch. Enough is enough. We must protect our constitution, our democracy.”

Rep. Greg Murphy: These impeachment proceedings are “a mockery of American justice.”

“This is a tragic day in our nation’s history. We have individuals that hate this president more than they love this country. Our country needs prayer, and not this destructive partisanship.”

Rep. Virginia Foxx: “Democrats found no proof that the president committed a crime.”

“These empty baseless articles expose for the American people what this is: a desperate, partisan attempt to avenge the loss of the Democrats’ preferred candidate in 2016.”

Rep. Mark Walker: “The majority of Americans see this circus for what it is. I wonder how many more will join them.”

Rep. Mark Meadows :“This has nothing to do with the Constitution. It has nothing to do with anything but raw politics.”

“We have bipartisan opposition to impeachment, not bipartisan support.”