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Trump impeachment: House debates charge of 'incitement of insurrection' – live Trump impeachment: House debates charge of 'incitement of insurrection' – live
(32 minutes later)
House in session to consider article of impeachment, which charges Trump with incitement of insurrection in connection to Capitol riotHouse in session to consider article of impeachment, which charges Trump with incitement of insurrection in connection to Capitol riot
Nancy Mace, a Republican of South Carolina, delivered her first floor speech as a congresswoman moments ago, addressing the article of impeachment against Donald Trump.
“This is not the reason why I wanted to give my first speech in our chambers,” Mace said.
Mace expressed dismay about the violence at the Capitol last week, saying she was very grateful that she sent her children home before Wednesday because she was worried about the rhetoric she was seeing.
Mace, who has been very critical of Trump and his allies who have echoed his baseless claims of widespread fraud in the presidential election, then went on to argue this impeachment is “rushed,” so she will not be supporting it.
She added that “there is violence on both sides of the aisle.” But the violence last week, which resulted in five deaths, was incited by the president and was carried out by a group of his supporters.
“I hold him accountable for the events that transpired,” Mace said of Trump. And yet ... she is not supporting impeachment.
The Capitol rioter who was photographed wearing a sweatshirt that said “Camp Auschwitz” has been arrested, according to multiple reports.
The rioter was identified as Robert Keith Packer of Virginia.
CNN reports:
Steny Hoyer, the House majority leader, rejected Republicans’ arguments that a swift impeachment would only further divide the country, after the president incited a violent mob to storm the Capitol.
“There are consequences to actions, and the actions of president of the United States demand urgent, clear action by the Congress of the United States,” Hoyer said.
Hoyer quoted the five Republican members of Congress who have already said they will support impeachment, including Liz Cheney, the House Republican conference chair.
The majority leader predicted that more Republicans would join them in supporting impeachment when the vote happens this afternoon.
The appearance of National Guard troops at the Capitol this morning is a visceral reminder of the violence that took place last week.The appearance of National Guard troops at the Capitol this morning is a visceral reminder of the violence that took place last week.
One picture, captured by a New York Times photographer, shows troops resting in a hallway that Nancy Pelosi frequently passes through on her way to her office.One picture, captured by a New York Times photographer, shows troops resting in a hallway that Nancy Pelosi frequently passes through on her way to her office.
The plaque next to the troops honors the service members who were quartered in the Capitol during the Civil War.The plaque next to the troops honors the service members who were quartered in the Capitol during the Civil War.
A CNN reporter shared a tweet comparing photos of troops at the Capitol today to sketches of troops at the Capitol during the Civil War.A CNN reporter shared a tweet comparing photos of troops at the Capitol today to sketches of troops at the Capitol during the Civil War.
Tom Cole, the top Republican on the House rules committee, made a process argument against the second impeachment of Donald Trump.Tom Cole, the top Republican on the House rules committee, made a process argument against the second impeachment of Donald Trump.
“This is not the type of robust process we’ve followed for every modern impeachment,” Cole said on the House floor.“This is not the type of robust process we’ve followed for every modern impeachment,” Cole said on the House floor.
The Republican congressman called for “healing” after a violent mob stormed the Capitol, arguing another impeachment would only further divide the nation.The Republican congressman called for “healing” after a violent mob stormed the Capitol, arguing another impeachment would only further divide the nation.
It’s worth noting that last week, Cole supported an objection to counting Arizona and Pennsylvania’s electoral votes for Joe Biden after the violence at the Capitol.It’s worth noting that last week, Cole supported an objection to counting Arizona and Pennsylvania’s electoral votes for Joe Biden after the violence at the Capitol.
Steny Hoyer, the House majority leader, told NBC News that the chamber would immediately send the impeachment article to the Senate if it passes the House.Steny Hoyer, the House majority leader, told NBC News that the chamber would immediately send the impeachment article to the Senate if it passes the House.
There had been discussions among Democrats about holding back the article until their party took control of the Senate, but it seems House leadership decided against that.There had been discussions among Democrats about holding back the article until their party took control of the Senate, but it seems House leadership decided against that.
The House is now debating the rule to set up the debate on the impeachment article later today, which will precede the vote on the article.The House is now debating the rule to set up the debate on the impeachment article later today, which will precede the vote on the article.
Speaking on the House floor, Jim McGovern, the Democratic chairman of the rules committee, noted that today’s vote is taking place at “an actual crime scene” after a violent mob stormed the Capitol.Speaking on the House floor, Jim McGovern, the Democratic chairman of the rules committee, noted that today’s vote is taking place at “an actual crime scene” after a violent mob stormed the Capitol.
McGovern recounted how Donald Trump incited the crowd to attack the Capitol, by encouraging a group of his supporters at a rally to march down Pennsylvania Avenue as Congress certified Joe Biden’s victory in the presidential election.McGovern recounted how Donald Trump incited the crowd to attack the Capitol, by encouraging a group of his supporters at a rally to march down Pennsylvania Avenue as Congress certified Joe Biden’s victory in the presidential election.
“I saw evil,” McGovern said of the rioters.“I saw evil,” McGovern said of the rioters.
Grun Kibben, the House chaplain, reflected on the gravity of the day and the grief of the past week in her opening prayer this morning.Grun Kibben, the House chaplain, reflected on the gravity of the day and the grief of the past week in her opening prayer this morning.
“We stand before you to give account for our role in today’s momentous decisions and our deepest desire to carry out responsibilities to govern, protect and preserve this nation while yet unsettled by the events of this past week,” Kibben said.“We stand before you to give account for our role in today’s momentous decisions and our deepest desire to carry out responsibilities to govern, protect and preserve this nation while yet unsettled by the events of this past week,” Kibben said.
The president’s likely impeachment comes exactly one week after he incited a violent, pro-Trump mob to storm the Capitol, resulting in five deaths.The president’s likely impeachment comes exactly one week after he incited a violent, pro-Trump mob to storm the Capitol, resulting in five deaths.
After gaveling in the session, the House immediately went into a brief recess before starting the debate on the article of impeachment.After gaveling in the session, the House immediately went into a brief recess before starting the debate on the article of impeachment.
The final vote on the article, incitement of insurrection, is expected around 3 pm ET.The final vote on the article, incitement of insurrection, is expected around 3 pm ET.
The article is expected to pass with the support of all Democrats and at least five Republicans, meaning this impeachment (unlike Donald Trump’s first impeachment) will be bipartisan.The article is expected to pass with the support of all Democrats and at least five Republicans, meaning this impeachment (unlike Donald Trump’s first impeachment) will be bipartisan.
The House has now gaveled in its session to debate and vote on the article of impeachment, incitement of insurrection, against Donald Trump.The House has now gaveled in its session to debate and vote on the article of impeachment, incitement of insurrection, against Donald Trump.
Over on Capitol Hill, National Guard troops have been deployed to protect lawmakers and staffers amid the impeachment vote, in response to the violence last week that has left five people dead.Over on Capitol Hill, National Guard troops have been deployed to protect lawmakers and staffers amid the impeachment vote, in response to the violence last week that has left five people dead.
This is Joan Greve in Washington, taking over for Martin Belam.
The House will soon gavel in its session to consider the article of impeachment against Donald Trump, which charges the president with incitement of insurrection in connection to the violent riot at the Capitol last week.
If the article is approved, as is expected, Trump will become the first president in US history to ever be impeached twice.
The matter will then move on to the Senate, where two-thirds of senators would have to vote to convict Trump to remove him from office.
It currently seems unlikely that the Senate would vote to convict, but reports indicate the Republican leader, Mitch McConnell, has told colleagues he believes Trump has committed impeachable offenses.
It will be quite an interesting day on Capitol Hill, so stay tuned.
As the coronavirus pandemic continues to sweep across the country state and local governments across the US are bracing for severe economic impacts in 2021 that could force layoffs of government employees and swinging cuts to services.
The last few months have offered a more detailed picture of what the pandemic’s economic recession will look like for state and local governments. While some have been spared the doomsday scenarios predicted at the outset of the pandemic, others have been “savaged”. On the line are millions of jobs and drastic cuts to already struggling services in the midst of a national health and economic crisis that is only getting worse.
State and local governments set the budgets for local police and fire departments, public schools, health departments, road constructions and repair, public transportation and many other essential public services. How each state, city or town gets revenue varies widely, though it ultimately is some combination of income, sales and property taxes. No matter what the combination, when the economy is hurting – people are unemployed and are buying less and businesses are closing – state and local governments can take a huge hit.
“There are a lot of state and local governments who are seeing very, very strong impacts, and they’re going to have to make very sizable tax increases or spending cuts, especially at the local level,” said Dan White, director of government consulting and fiscal policy research with Moody’s Analytics, which has estimated that budget deficits will total about $80bn to $100bn even with federal aid from Congress’ stimulus packages.
The outlook for some state governments is not as bad as economists had feared at the beginning of the pandemic. States including California and Virginia have been spared from huge losses, partly because tax revenue in those states have not declined as much as initially expected as people went back to work and wealthier workers continued to work from home.
But other states are looking at huge deficits, some worth billions of dollars, particularly as the industries that they rely on for revenue, like tourism or energy, have declined because of the pandemic.
Read more of Lauren Aratani’s report here: US state and local governments brace for layoffs and cuts due to pandemic
A month after federal regulators ordered it to disclose how its practices affect children and teenagers, TikTok is tightening its privacy practices for the under-18 crowd.
Starting today, the default privacy setting for accounts with users aged 13 to 15 will be private. That means only someone the user approves as a follower can view their videos, which was not the case previously. But teens can still change this setting to public if they want.
Older teenagers won’t see this default setting change. For users aged 16 or 17, the default setting to let people download the videos they created will now be “off,” rather than “on.”
Reuters report that TikTok is also blocking users’ ability to download videos created by those 15 or younger. This age group will also see direct messaging restricted and won’t be able to host live streams. A tool called “family pairing,” meanwhile, lets parents link their TikTok account to their teen’s to enable content and privacy settings.
Last month, the Federal Trade Commission asked TikTok’s parent company, along with Facebook, Twitter, Amazon and five other social media companies to provide detailed information on how they collect and use consumers’ personal data and how their practices affect children and teens.
TikTok users are asked to put in their birthday when they sign up for the service, but, as with other social media platforms, there is no real verification to ensure it is accurate.
The Trump administration was involved in a protracted attempt last year to ban TikTok in the US altogether. The irony that in the end it was the president himself who was banned from most social media services following last week’s assault on the US Capitol has not been lost on many users.
Some truly unprecedented scenes in the US Capitol in the run-up to the inauguration of Joe Biden as president.
Mike Allen and Jim VandeHei at Axios have this to say on the strategy of the Republican leadership over the attempt to impeach Donald Trump for a second time:
Read more here: Axios – Top Republicans want Trump done — forevermore
Jacob Blake’s uncle, Justin Blake, has written for us today about how there are two justice systems in America:
Last week, I was again reminded that we live under two justice systems. One lets armed white insurrectionists violently attack our nation’s seat of government. Another gasses, beats, and shoots rubber bullets at people defending Black lives. And even though I live nowhere near Washington DC, this is personal for me.
The day before the attempted insurrection at the US Capitol, Rusten Sheskey got off scot-free. He is the Kenosha cop who shot my nephew, Jacob Blake, seven times in the back. The Kenosha district attorney, Michael Gravely, declined to charge Sheskey, and he faces no consequences. Jacob is now permanently paralyzed from the waist down.
Sheskey is just like the thousands of Trump-supporting, white nationalists who laid siege to the US Capitol in broad daylight. They broke windows, stole federal property, and ransacked offices. They endangered lawmakers, their staff, and other employees in the complex. They may have exposed countless people to Covid-19. They had flex cuffs and placed pipe bombs. They were out for blood.
This justice system calls these people “protesters”, and they are protected by the first amendment. Sheskey operates under this justice system, and it is unacceptable. He claimed self-defense after he shot Jacob in the back, in front of his kids, also in broad daylight. No plausible explanation exists for this escalated response.
The fact that the Capitol insurrection and Jacob’s shooting both happened in broad daylight shows how barefaced state-sanctioned violence has become.
Read more here: Justin Blake – There are two justice systems in America. Ask my nephew, Jacob Blake
Megan Rapinoe has spoken on the recent attack on the US Capitol, saying: “This is America. We showed our true colours”. The 35-year old soccer forward opened a media teleconference yesterday with a six-minute exposition on the fractious state of the country in the wake of last week’s siege. She added: “Unleashing a white supremacist mob is nothing new to America”
Sahil Kapur at NBC News says that the decisions Republican lawmakers make in the coming days over the impeachment of Donald Trump “could define the party and shape American democracy for generations to come”. He writes:
In Kapur’s analysis, it may come down to the actions of one man:
Read more here: NBC News – Trump impeachment may define the Republican Party
President-elect Joe Biden has announced ambassador Samantha Power as his nominee for Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and has also said he will elevate the position to become a member of the National Security Council. Power served in the Obama administration as the US permanent representative to the United Nations.
In a statement, Biden said:
If you’ve got a few minutes to spare, then I can recommend investing a bit of time on this. The Hill this morning have undertaken publishing a 4,500 word “oral history” of last week’s assault on the US Capitol. It takes in words from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle and reporters who were there on the day, and some of the quotes bring home the extreme sense of danger that they felt on the day. Here are the words of Colorado’s Rep. Jason Crow:
Read more here: The Hill – ‘I saw my life flash before my eyes’: An oral history of the Capitol attack