- Title: Protesters call for Trump to be impeached and removed from office
- Date: 18th December 2019
- Summary: WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES (DECEMBER 18, 2019) (REUTERS) WIDE OF IMPEACH AND REMOVE TRUMP RALLY (SOUNDBITE) (English) WILLIAM GOODWIN - DIRECTOR OF GOVERNMENT RELATIONS AT VOTE VETS SAYING: "Today, the House of Representatives will vote to impeach president. Today, the House will vote to impeach the president! There we go. The commander in chief of America's armed forces for abusing his office, for taking the awesome powers vested in him by the Constitution and abusing them for his own political gain in a corrupt scheme that has endangered our national security and the people." VIEW OF PROTESTERS HOLDING SIGNS (SOUNDBITE) (English) ELIZABETH WYDRA - PRESIDENT OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY CENTER SAYING: "President Trump is now going to be only the third president in American history to be impeached. It is a sad and sobering reality that he has brought our nation to this moment of reckoning, and make no mistake, this is a moment of reckoning. History has its eyes on the people behind us in this building. The nation has its eyes on the people behind us in this building. Will they live up to their oath to defend the Constitution?" PROTESTERS (SOUNDBITE) (English) EVAN MCMILLIN - PRESIDENT OF STANDUP REPUBLIC SAYING: "It's about time for the facts to matter. It's about time for us, the American people, to say enough with Trump's dangerous abuses of power and corruption. It's about time for Congress to defend the constitution. It's about time for President Donald Trump to be impeached and removed. (CHEERING) And it's about time for America to get back to building a more perfect union with liberty and justice for all. Thank you." WIDE OF RALLY (SOUNDBITE) (English) RAHNA EPTING- EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF MOVEON SAYING: "But make no mistake about it, I am not happy to be here. Factually, quite a day for America. It's a somber day in the sense that we have a president through his actions, who is abuse of office, abuse of power, has forced us to take no other recourse but to impeach. We don't want to impeach a president in the United States, we have no other choice. We have to draw a line in the sand, we have to say you cannot cross this. The American people won't stand for it." WHITE FLASH (SOUNDBITE) (English) NEERA TANDEN - PRESIDENT OF THE CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS SAYING: "If the country, if the Congress does not act, we are inviting Donald Trump to commit crimes from here on in. We face an election in a year, it's true, but the reality is that if he goes unpunished, he will try to do what he did tried to do two days after the Mueller report, ensure a foreign government helps him win his election by essentially extorting them. These are dark times." PEOPLE LISTENING (SOUNDBITE) (English) SEAN ELDRIDGE - PRESIDENT OF STAND-UP AMERICA SAYING: "To every member of Congress, for our kids and our grand-kids, it's time to stand up, stand up to the criminal in the White House, stand up for our constitution, stand up for our democracy. Our children are watching. Voters are watching. History is watching. Do the right thing and impeach and remove this criminal president." WIDE OF RALLY
- Embargoed: 1st January 2020 16:45
- Keywords: Elizabeth Wydra Evan McMillin Neera Tanden Rahna Epring Sean Eldridge William Goodwin
- Location: WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES
- City: WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES
- Country: USA
- Reuters ID: LVA001BAI7VBB
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Demonstrators rallied in Washington on Wednesday (December 18) to call for U.S. President Donald Trump's impeachment and removal from office hours before the U.S. House of Representatives would take a vote on the historic measure.
Trump faces one charge of abuse of power for asking Ukraine to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden, a leading Democratic contender to oppose him in the 2020 presidential election. The Republican president also faces a charge of obstructing the congressional investigation into the matter.
Speakers at a rally, which was held at the foot of the U.S. Capitol, said they did not celebrate impeachment, but the president's actions left no option but to impeach him and adhere to the principles of the U.S. constitution.
The House will vote on Wednesday on two articles of impeachment against the president, which if approved, will send the matter to the Republican-led Senate to hold a trial on whether to remove him from office. The Senate is unlikely to vote to convict the president.
Trump has denied wrongdoing and accused Democrats on Tuesday of pursuing an "illegal, partisan attempted coup" and declaring "open war" on American democracy.
(Production: Gershon Peaks, Kia Johnson) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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