Giuliani says he won’t be on Trump impeachment defense team

Trump was impeached by the House for a second time last week.

President Donald Trump is slated to hand over control of the White House to President-elect Joe Biden in three days.

The House of Representatives voted to impeach Trump last Wednesday on an article for "incitement of insurrection" for his role in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol -- making him the only president to be impeached twice.


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Senate will not return early for impeachment trial

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s office has confirmed the Senate will not return early for an impeachment trial.

The GOP leader spoke to Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and said he has no intention of invoking any emergency authority the leaders have to jointly call the Senate back.

That means the earliest the trial can start is  Jan. 19 -- the same day as the first confirmation hearing for one of Biden's Cabinet picks and one day before Biden's inauguration. It's unclear how those events might be affected as Trump is poised to be impeached in the House later Wednesday.

-ABC News' Trish Turner (edited)


Dems paint Trump as looming threat to the nation

Rep. Jason Crow, D-Colo, a former Army Ranger with multiple combat deployments, called on his Republican colleagues to find the courage to vote to impeach Trump.

"Last week I stood in that gallery to defend this chamber against the violent mob called here by Donald Trump. I have dedicated my life to the defense of our nation and Donald Trump is a risk to all that I love," he said. "I'm not asking you to storm the beaches of Normandy, but show a fraction of the courage we ask of our troops every day. Leadership is hard. It's time to impeach."

Freshman progressive Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., who introduced a resolution on the House floor Monday seeking to expel lawmakers who still voted to overturn the election after the Capitol siege, was met with boos from Republicans after her remarks in which she called Trump "a white supremacist president."

"If we fail to remove a white supremacist president, who incited a white supremacist insurrection, it's communities like Missouri's 1st District that suffer the most," she said.

Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., a staunch critic of Trump's, warned earlier, "He is capable of starting a Civil War."

Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-Texas, as with many Democrats before her, have called on Trump not only to be impeached but to "never be allowed to hold office again."


6th House Republican backs impeachment

GOP Rep. Dan Newhouse, Wash., issued a statement saying he would vote yes on the article of impeachment shortly before speaking on the House floor.

"These articles of impeachment are flawed, but I will not use process as an excuse. There's no excuse for President Trump's actions," Newhouse said.

"Last week there was a domestic threat at the door of the Capitol, and he did nothing to stop it. That is why with a heavy heart and clear resolve I will vote yes on these articles of impeachment."

Roughly two dozen Democrats on the House floor applauded Newhouse when he announced his plans to vote to impeach Trump.

Shortly after, Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Wash., said she will also vote to impeach Trump in her floor marks. She had previously announced her intentions to break from the president, and said on the floor it's not a "fear-based decision."

No House Republicans voted to impeach Trump in 2019.

-ABC News' Katherine Faulders and Benjamin Siegel


Trump issues statement calling for ‘NO violence, NO lawbreaking and NO vandalism’

As the House debates impeaching him a second time, President Donald Trump issued a statement Wednesday urging for “‘NO violence, NO lawbreaking and NO vandalism.’

“In light of reports of more demonstrations, I urge that there must be NO violence, NO lawbreaking and NO vandalism of any kind,” Trump said in the statement.

“That is not what I stand for, and it is not what America stands for,” he added. “I call on ALL Americans to help ease tensions and calm tempers. Thank You.”

-ABC News' Elizabeth Thomas


Debate on the 'rule' kicks off ahead of article debate

Democrats and Republicans are expected to debate for one hour -- equally divided between Democrats and Republicans -- before a procedural vote ahead of the chamber beginning debate on the impeachment article itself.

Democrat Rep. Jim McGovern, the chairman of the House Rules Committee, setting up that preliminary vote on the terms of the debate, called the Capitol a "crime scene" and the rioters "traitors" and "domestic terrorists" in an assault instigated by Trump, emphasizing, "We wouldn't be here if it weren't for the president of the United States."

McGovern described the day as "a ceremonial role for the Congress -- one that sends a message to the world that democracy persists -- but at a rally a mile and-a-half down Pennsylvania Avenue, Donald Trump was stoking the anger of a violent mob," he began. "He said Vice President Pence has to come through and told the mob to walk down to the Capitol."

"The signal was unmistakable. These thugs should stage a coup so Donald Trump can hang on to power, the people's will be damned. This beacon of democracy became the site of a vicious attack. Rioters chanted, 'Hang Mike Pence,' as a noose and gallows were built. Capitol Police officers were beaten and sprayed with pepper spray. Attackers hunted down lawmakers to hold them hostage or worse," McGovern continued.

"I saw evil, Mr. Speaker. Our country came under attack, not from a foreign nation but from within," he added. He also slammed Republicans for preaching unity from members who voted to overturn a free and fair election.

Republican Rep. Tom Cole -- one of the lawmakers who object to Electoral College results after the violent seige -- called Jan. 6 the "darkest day" of his long career in Washington, but said Democrats, instead of promoting unity, are looking to "divide us further" by pursuing Trump's impeachment.

Cole did not directly defend Trump's actions or rhetoric but argued in Congress, one week before Biden's inauguration, sets up a "flawed process."