Trump Denies Wrongdoing In Deadly Assault; Condemns Impeachment
By Worthy News Breaking News Team George Whitten and Stefan J. Bos
(Worthy News) – In his first public comments since last week’s deadly assault on the US Congress, President Donald J. Trump condemned those seeking to impeach him over the violence.
“We want no violence. And on the impeachment, it is a continuation of the greatest witch hunt in the history of politics,” Trump told reporters while departing the White House.
Trump denied that his remarks calling thousands of supporters to march to the US Capitol over alleged voter fraud sparked the uprising that left five dead. He said his comments were “totally appropriate” and blamed Democrats for further dividing the nation.
The storming of the US Capitol, which houses Congress, also threatened the lives of legislators, staff, police, journalists, and his vice-president.
However, Trump said blaming and impeaching him would be “ridiculous” and was “causing tremendous anger.” And, “I want no violence,” Trump stressed before boarding Marine One helicopter.
VISITING WALL
Banned from virtually all social media platforms, the increasingly isolated president also used his brief meetings with reporters to address impeachment.
“The 25th Amendment is of zero risk to me but will come back to haunt Joe Biden and the Biden administration,” Trump said from Alamo, Texas.
Trump referred to the article in the constitution on removing the president while visiting the anti-migration wall he ordered on the US-Mexico border.
Separately US Vice President Mike Pence formally rejected calls to strip Trump of his presidential authority by invoking the 25th amendment.
In a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, seen by Worthy News, Pence said he did not believe “such a course of action is in the best interest of our nation or consistent with our constitution.”
CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY
He also warned that efforts to remove Trump from office risked “further divide and inflame the passions of the moment.”
Pence recalled that “last week, I did not yield to pressure to exert power beyond my constitutional authority to determine the outcomes of the election.”
And, he added. “I will not now yield to efforts in the House of Representatives to play political games at a time so serious in the life of our nation.”
He wrote it was “time to unite our country as we prepare to inaugurate President-elect Joe Biden.” Pence’s refusal to invoke the 25th Amendment effectively paved the way for the House to move forward with impeachment.
Already scheduled to leave office next week, Trump was on the verge of becoming the only president in history to be twice impeached.
MORE VIOLENCE?
While Democrats led the effort, at least five Republican lawmakers, including third-ranking House GOP leader Liz Cheney of Wyoming, announced they would vote to impeach Trump on Wednesday.
“The President of the United States summoned this mob, assembled the mob, and lit the flame of this attack,” said Cheney in a statement. “There has never been a greater betrayal by a President of the United States of his office and his oath to the Constitution.”
As lawmakers reconvened at the Capitol for the first time since the bloody siege, they were bracing for more violence ahead of Democrat Biden’s inauguration, January
As many as 15,000 National Guard members could be deployed in Washington, D.C., for the January 20 presidential inauguration events for Democrat Biden, Worthy News monitored.
At least 10,000 will be in the nation’s capital by Saturday, the National Guard leadership said in published remarks. And the number of National Guardsmen in Washington D.C. could ultimately rise as high as 15,000.
If you are interested in articles produced by Worthy News, please check out our FREE sydication service available to churches or online Christian ministries. To find out more, visit Worthy Plugins.