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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Biden announces joint session of Congress next month

During his address Thursday, Biden announced his first joint session of Congress will take place next month, where he will address the second pillar of his recovery plan, focused on investments in infrastructure.

The president-elect praised Congress for working across the aisle to pass a COVID-19 relief bill in December, but reiterated his message that the package by itself was only a "down payment." He said more is required, framing his policy proposal as the next step and urging lawmakers to push forward.

After blasting the current administration's vaccine distribution plan as a "dismal failure," Biden previewed his remarks Friday, where he plans on laying out his vaccination plan.

"We'll have to move heaven and Earth to get more people vaccinated, to create more places for them to get vaccinated, to mobilize more medical teams to get shots in people's arms, to increase vaccine supply and to get it out the door as fast as possible," he said.

-ABC News' John Verhovek, Molly Nagle, Averi Harper and Beatrice Peterson


Sanders calls Biden's COVID plan a 'very strong 1st installment'

Sen. Bernie Sanders issued a statement in support of Biden's COVID Rescue Plan, calling it a "very strong first installment," hinting that he believes more should be done in the future. It could serve as an indication of how the plan will be received by the progressive wing of the Democratic Party.

"President-Elect Biden has put forth a very strong first installment of an emergency relief plan that will begin to provide desperately needed assistance to tens of millions of working families facing economic hardship during the pandemic," Sanders said Thursday in the statement.

"The president-elect's COVID-relief plan includes many initiatives that the American people want and need, including increasing the $600 direct payments to $2,000, and raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour," he added. "As the incoming Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, I look forward to working with the president-elect and my colleagues in Congress to provide bold emergency relief to the American people as soon as possible."

-ABC News' Averi Harper


Biden introducing vaccination plan, economic rescue package in address

Biden, in an evening address from Wilmington, Delaware, is announcing his vaccination and economic rescue legislative package.

The ambitious $1.9 trillion proposal focuses on stimulus amid the ongoing pandemic.

Biden's plan would dedicate more than $1 trillion of the $1.9 trillion price tag for direct stimulus, officials said, while $400 billion would go toward COVID-related projects, including the nationwide vaccination program, and $440 billion toward relief for communities and businesses.

The plan includes direct payments of up to $1,400 to families in need, that when combined with the recent $600 stimulus payment would deliver on Biden's pledge to pass $2,000 of direct payments, along with a $400 weekly unemployment insurance benefit through September and a child tax credit.

-ABC News' Molly Nagle


Moving day begins at the White House

Photos show the beginning of the process to move President Donald Trump out of the White House, as workers load boxes on to trucks.


Republican lawmaker explains why he voted ‘no’ on the article of impeachment

Although South Dakota Rep. Dusty Johnson said that Trump deserves “more than his fair share of blame” for the U.S. Capitol riot last week, he voted not to impeach the president Wednesday.

Johnson told ABC News that his decision was based on due process of the law.

“I think due process matters,” said Johnson. “I just felt like a snap impeachment was not in the best interest of the country.”

He said Trump could have been held accountable through censure.

“Impeachment for someone who is out of office looks like some sort of formal reprimand. Really, you can’t kick them out when they’re already gone,” said Johnson. “I think (Nancy Pelosi) could have gotten 100 Republican votes for censure.”

Democrats defended the use of impeachment because an impeachment and a conviction vote by two-thirds of the Senate would open Trump up to a congressional ban on running for federal office. Trump has already indicated that he would run for office again in 2024.

Johnson said that he and “dozens” of his Republican colleagues felt frustrated on the House floor Wednesday. He said that his fellow Democrats missed an opportunity to work across the aisle.

“The rhetoric on the House floor today was the most toxic I have seen in my two years. It was the most rancorous,” he said. “And that’s one of the reasons why I was trying to get some of my Democratic colleagues more interested in a bipartisan censure, a more unifying approach than, I think, a largely single-party impeachment process.”

-ABC News Haley Yamada