Read the Articles of Impeachment Against President Trump

The House Judiciary Committee approved the articles of impeachment against President Trump, setting the stage for a vote over whether he should be only the third president in American history charged with high crimes and misdemeanors.

The first article charges him with abuse of power for pressuring Ukraine to assist him in his re-election campaign by damaging Democratic rivals. The second article charges him with obstruction of Congress for blocking testimony and refusing to provide documents in response to House subpoenas in the impeachment inquiry.

The following are the articles of impeachment with context and analysis by Peter Baker, The Times’s chief White House correspondent.

Impeaching Donald John Trump, President of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Mr. NADLER submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on

RESOLUTION Impeaching Donald John Trump, President of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors. Resolved, That Donald J. John Trump, President of the United States, is impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors 1 and that the following articles of impeachment be exhibited to the United States Senate: Articles of impeachment exhibited by the House of Representatives of the United States of America in the name of itself and of the people of the United States of America, against Donald J. John Trump 2 , President of the United States of America, in maintenance and support of

• 1 These first paragraphs are taken directly from the articles of impeachment in the cases against Richard M. Nixon and Bill Clinton, establishing the historical precedent. (The House Judiciary Committee approved the articles against Mr. Nixon but he resigned before the full House could vote; Mr. Clinton was impeached by the House and acquitted by the Senate.)
• 2 After 14 hours of contentious debate, members of the Judiciary Committee approved only one amendment: changing two instances of Mr. Trump’s middle initial to his middle name.

its impeachment against him for high crimes and misdemeanors.

ARTICLE I: ABUSE OF POWER

The Constitution provides that the House of Representatives “shall have the sole Power of Impeachment” and that the President “shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors”. In his conduct of the office of President of the United States — and in violation of his constitutional oath faithfully to execute the office of President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed — Donald J. Trump has abused the powers of the Presidency 3 , in that:

Using the powers of his high office, President Trump solicited the interference of a foreign government, Ukraine, in the 2020 United States Presidential election. He did so through a scheme or course of conduct that included soliciting the Government of Ukraine to publicly announce investigations that would benefit his reelection, harm the election prospects of a political opponent, and influence the 2020 United States Presidential election to his advantage. President Trump also sought to pressure the Government of Ukraine to take these steps by condi-

• 3 The House Democrats opted not to charge Mr. Trump with “bribery" or “extortion,” as they had earlier contemplated. Since those are criminal charges, using those terms invited debate about the statutory elements and judicial precedents. But since an impeachable offense does not have to be a specific crime, the Democrats decided to use the broader charge of “abuse of power.”

tioning official United States Government acts of significant value to Ukraine on its public announcement of the investigations. President Trump engaged in this scheme or course of conduct for corrupt purposes in pursuit of personal political benefit. In so doing, President Trump used the powers of the Presidency in a manner that compromised the national security of the United States and undermined the integrity of the United States democratic process. He thus ignored and injured the interests of the Nation.

President Trump engaged in this scheme or course of conduct through the following means:

(1) President Trump — acting both directly and through his agents within and outside the United States Government — corruptly solicited the Government of Ukraine to publicly announce investigations into —

(A) a political opponent, former Vice President Joseph R. Biden, Jr.; and

(B) a discredited theory promoted by Russia alleging that Ukraine — rather than Russia — interfered in the 2016 United States Presidential election.

(2) With the same corrupt motives, President Trump — acting both directly and through his agents