Donald Trump Is Headed Towards Being Impeached For The Second Time

President Donald Trump is likely to become the first commander in chief to be impeached twice.

On Wednesday, the House of Representatives will on a single Article of Impeachment against President Trump. The charge is “incitement of insurrection.”

On Tuesday, the House voted on a resolution calling on Vice President Mike Pence to oust Mr. Trump from office using the 25th Amendment. While the resolution passed 223-205, largely on party lines, Pence released a letter that was addressed to Speaker Nancy Pelosi before the vote took place. He stated he did not support using the 25th Amendment to remove the President.

“I do not believe that such a course of action is in the best interest of our nation or consistent with our Constitution,” Mr. Pence wrote in the letter. “I urge you and every member of Congress to avoid actions that would further divide and inflame the passions of the moment.”

Mr. Pence had previously indicated privately that he did not support using the 25th Amendment. His rejection of the resolution all but ensures the House will vote to impeach Mr. Trump on Wednesday.  While some GOP House members have privately signaled their willingness to vote to impeach, five have come out publicly supporting it.

Representative Liz Cheney of Wyoming, the No. 3 House Republican, announced on Tuesday that she would vote to impeach Trump, saying there had “never been a greater betrayal by a president of the United States” than Mr. Trump’s incitement of a mob that attacked the Capitol last week.

Representatives Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, John Katko of New York, Fred Upton of Michigan, and Jamie Herrera Beutler also released statements today stating that they will vote to impeach. In addition, The New York Times is reporting that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has told associates that “he believes President Trump committed impeachable offenses and that he is pleased that Democrats are moving to impeach him, believing that it will make it easier to purge him from the party.”

After passing the House, its fate in the Senate is a bit less clear. The Senate is not scheduled to return to regular business until Jan. 19, a day before President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, meaning there would be virtually no chance of conducting a Senate trial and ousting Trump from office prematurely.