Donald Trump becomes first US president to be impeached twice
Donald Trump has become the first US president in history to be impeached twice.
A majority of the US House of Representatives tonight voted to impeach Trump, formally charging him with inciting an insurrection.
Following hours of debate in Congress, Democrats secured enough votes to push through the impeachment.
The final tally was 232 votes to 197, with 10 Republicans voting against the president.
This made it the most bipartisan presidential impeachment in history.
Trump only has a week remaining in office before the inauguration of Democrat Joe Biden on 20 January and is unlikely to be removed before then.
However, if convicted in the Senate he would be barred from ever holding office again.
It comes a week after a violent mob of the president’s supporters stormed the Capitol, leading to five deaths.
Trump has been accused of inciting the violence after he gave a speech calling on his supporters to “walk down to the Capitol”.
House Democrats called for Trump’s removal, warning that allowing him to remain in office would pose a threat to national security, democracy and the US Constitution.
Ahead of tonight’s vote speaker Nancy Pelosi said: “The president of the United States incited this insurrection, this armed rebellion against our common country.
“He must go. He is a clear and present danger to the nation that we all love.”
It came as Trump faced a fresh threat to his business interests as the corporate world reacted to his actions.
New York City last night said it will cut business ties with the Trump Organization as a result of the riots.
“The president incited a rebellion against the United States government that killed five people and threatened to derail the constitutional transfer of power,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said in a statement.
“The city of New York will not be associated with those unforgivable acts in any shape, way or form.”