Articles of Impeachment Against

Donald John Trump

{House Resolution 755, One Hundred Sixteenth Congress, First Session}

CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

 December 18, 2019.

RESOLUTION

Resolved, That Donald John Trump, President of the United States, is impeached

for high crimes and misdemeanors 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 John Trump, President of the United

States of America, in maintenance and support of 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, 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 conditioning 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.
H. Res. 755 - 2

(2) With the same corrupt motives, President Trump—acting both directly

and through his agents within and outside the United States

Government—conditioned two official acts on the public announcements that he

had requested— 

(A) the release of $391 million of United States taxpayer funds that

Congress had appropriated on a bipartisan basis for the purpose of

providing vital military and security assistance to Ukraine to oppose

Russian aggression and which President Trump had ordered suspended;

and

(B) a head of state meeting at the White House, which the

President of Ukraine sought to demonstrate continued United States

support for the Government of Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression. 

(3) Faced with the public revelation of his actions, President Trump

ultimately released the military and security assistance to the Government of

Ukraine, but has persisted in openly and corruptly urging and soliciting Ukraine to

undertake investigations for his personal political benefit.

These actionswere consistentwithPresident Trump’s previous invitations of foreign

interference in United States elections. 

In all of this, President Trump abused the powers of the Presidency by ignoring and

injuring national security and other vital national interests to obtain an improper personal

political benefit. He has also betrayed the Nation by abusing his high office to enlist a foreign

power in corrupting democratic elections. 

Wherefore President Trump, by such conduct, has demonstratedthathe will remain

a threat to national security and the Constitution if allowed to remain in office, and has

acted in a manner grossly incompatible with self-governance and the rule of law. President

Trump thus warrants impeachment and trial, removal from office, and disqualification to

hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit under the United States.

ARTICLE II: OBSTRUCTION OF CONGRESS

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 directed the unprecedented, categorical, and

indiscriminate defiance of subpoenasissued by the House of Representatives pursuant to its

“sole Power of Impeachment”. President Trump has abused the powers of the Presidency

in a manner offensive to, and subversive of, the Constitution, in that: 

The House of Representatives has engaged in an impeachment inquiry focused on

President Trump’s corrupt solicitation of the Government of Ukraine to interfere in the 2020

United States Presidential election. As part of this impeachment inquiry, the Committees

undertaking the investigation served subpoenas seeking documents and testimony deemed

vital to the inquiry from various Executive Branch agencies and offices, and current and

former officials. 

In response, without lawful cause or excuse, President Trump directed Executive

Branch agencies, offices, and officials not to comply with those subpoenas. President Trump

thus interposed the powers of the Presidency against the lawful subpoenas of the House of

Representatives, and assumed to himself functions and judgments necessary to the exercise

of the “sole Power of Impeachment” vested by the Constitution in the House of

Representatives.

President Trump abused the powers of his high office through the following means:

(1) Directing the White House to defy a lawful subpoena by withholding the

production of documents sought therein by the Committees. 

(2) Directing other Executive Branch agencies and offices to defy lawful

subpoenas and withhold the production of documents and records from the

Committees—in response to which the Department of State, Office of Management

and Budget, Department of Energy, and Department of Defense refused to produce

a single document or record.
H. Res. 755 - 3

(3) Directing current and former Executive Branch officials not to

cooperate with the Committees—in response to which nine Administration officials

defied subpoenas for testimony, namely John Michael “Mick” Mulvaney, Robert

B. Blair, John A. Eisenberg, Michael Ellis, Preston Wells Griffith, Russell T.

Vought, Michael Duffey, Brian McCormack, and T. Ulrich Brechbuhl. 

These actions were consistentwithPresident Trump’s previous efforts to undermine

United States Government investigations into foreign interference in United States elections.

Through these actions, President Trump sought to arrogate to himself the right to

determine the propriety, scope, and nature of an impeachment inquiry into his own conduct,

as well as the unilateral prerogative to deny any and all information to the House of

Representatives in the exercise of its “sole Power of Impeachment”. In the history of the

Republic, no President has ever ordered the complete defiance of an impeachment inquiry

or sought to obstruct and impede so comprehensively the ability of the House of

Representatives to investigate “high Crimes and Misdemeanors”. This abuse of office served

to cover up the President’s own repeated misconduct and to seize and control the power of

impeachment—and thus to nullify a vital constitutionalsafeguard vested solely in the House

of Representatives.

In all of this, President Trump has acted in a manner contrary to his trust as

President and subversive of constitutional government, to the great prejudice of the cause

of law and justice, and to the manifest injury of the people of the United States. 

Wherefore, President Trump, by such conduct, has demonstrated that he will

remain a threat to the Constitution if allowed to remain in office, and has acted in a manner

grossly incompatible with self-governance and the rule of law. President Trump thus

warrants impeachment and trial, removal fromoffice, and disqualification to hold and enjoy

any office of honor, trust, or profit under the United States.

Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Attest:

Clerk.