The United States House of Representatives announced the start of a formal impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump on Sept. 24. The inquiry was launched after reports emerged that Trump had called the president of Ukraine in a private phone call to investigate former vice president and 2020 Democratic candidate Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden for their involvement in Ukraine. There was a threat of withholding military aid until Ukraine had started an investigation. [However, there is no evidence that either Biden or his son did anything illegal.] In launching the inquiry, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, said that Trump’s actions were “a betrayal of the national security and betrayal of the integrity of our elections.”
The House of Representatives has since begun closed-door hearings to receive testimonies from top White House officials, to determine whether any impeachable offenses took place that would possibly result in Trump’s removal from office. With the first steps of impeachment now in progress, Trump has become the fourth U.S. President to face an investigation of the highest federal level. On Oct. 31, the House passed a resolution that allowed the impeachment process to continue, including the introduction of public televised hearings that started the week of Nov. 13.
