[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 24 (Wednesday, February 5, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S936-S939]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        TRIAL OF DONALD J. TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

  The CHIEF JUSTICE. The Senate will convene as a Court of Impeachment.


                              The Journal

  The CHIEF JUSTICE. If there is no objection, the Journal of 
proceedings of the trial is approved to date.
  The Deputy Sergeant at Arms, Jennifer Hemingway, will make the 
proclamation.
  The Deputy Sergeant at Arms, Jennifer Hemingway, made proclamation as 
follows:

       Hear ye! Hear ye! Hear ye! All persons are commanded to 
     keep silent, on pain of imprisonment, while the Senate of the 
     United States is sitting for the trial of the articles of 
     impeachment exhibited by the House of Representatives against 
     Donald John Trump, President of the United States.
       As a reminder to everyone in the Chamber, as well as those 
     in the Galleries, demonstrations of approval or disapproval 
     are prohibited.

  The CHIEF JUSTICE. The majority leader is recognized.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. Chief Justice, the Senate is now ready to vote on 
the Articles of Impeachment, and after that is done, we will adjourn 
the Court of Impeachment.


                               Article I

  The CHIEF JUSTICE. The clerk will now read the first Article of 
Impeachment.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:


                       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

[[Page S937]]

     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 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 actions were consistent with President 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 
     demonstrated that he 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.


                           Vote on Article I

  The CHIEF JUSTICE. Each Senator, when his or her name is called, will 
stand at his or her place and vote guilty or not guilty, as required by 
rule XXIII of the Senate Rules on Impeachment.
  Article I, section 3, clause 6 of the Constitution regarding the vote 
required for conviction on impeachment provides that no person shall be 
convicted without the concurrence of two-thirds of the Members present.
  The question is on the first Article of Impeachment. Senators, how 
say you? Is the respondent, Donald John Trump, guilty or not guilty?
  A rollcall vote is required.
  The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk called the roll.
  The result was announced--guilty 48, not guilty 52, as follows:

                         [Rollcall Vote No. 33]

                               GUILTY--48

     Baldwin
     Bennet
     Blumenthal
     Booker
     Brown
     Cantwell
     Cardin
     Carper
     Casey
     Coons
     Cortez Masto
     Duckworth
     Durbin
     Feinstein
     Gillibrand
     Harris
     Hassan
     Heinrich
     Hirono
     Jones
     Kaine
     King
     Klobuchar
     Leahy
     Manchin
     Markey
     Menendez
     Merkley
     Murphy
     Murray
     Peters
     Reed
     Romney
     Rosen
     Sanders
     Schatz
     Schumer
     Shaheen
     Sinema
     Smith
     Stabenow
     Tester
     Udall
     Van Hollen
     Warner
     Warren
     Whitehouse
     Wyden

                             NOT GUILTY--52

     Alexander
     Barrasso
     Blackburn
     Blunt
     Boozman
     Braun
     Burr
     Capito
     Cassidy
     Collins
     Cornyn
     Cotton
     Cramer
     Crapo
     Cruz
     Daines
     Enzi
     Ernst
     Fischer
     Gardner
     Graham
     Grassley
     Hawley
     Hoeven
     Hyde-Smith
     Inhofe
     Johnson
     Kennedy
     Lankford
     Lee
     Loeffler
     McConnell
     McSally
     Moran
     Murkowski
     Paul
     Perdue
     Portman
     Risch
     Roberts
     Rounds
     Rubio
     Sasse
     Scott (FL)
     Scott (SC)
     Shelby
     Sullivan
     Thune
     Tillis
     Toomey
     Wicker
     Young
  The CHIEF JUSTICE. On this Article of Impeachment, 48 Senators have 
pronounced Donald John Trump, President of the United States, guilty as 
charged; 52 Senators have pronounced him not guilty as charged.
  Two-thirds of the Senators present not having pronounced him guilty, 
the Senate adjudges that the Respondent, Donald John Trump, President 
of the United States, is not guilty as charged on the first Article of 
Impeachment.


                               Article II

  The clerk will read the second Article of Impeachment.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:


                  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 subpoenas issued 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.
       (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 consistent with President 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 constitutional 
     safeguard 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 from office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy 
     any office of honor, trust, or profit under the United 
     States.


                           Vote on Article II

  The CHIEF JUSTICE. The question is on the second Article of 
Impeachment.

[[Page S938]]

Senators, how say you? Is the respondent, Donald John Trump, guilty or 
not guilty?
  The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk called the roll.
  The result was announced--guilty 47, not guilty 53, as follows:

                         [Rollcall Vote No. 34]

                               GUILTY--47

     Baldwin
     Bennet
     Blumenthal
     Booker
     Brown
     Cantwell
     Cardin
     Carper
     Casey
     Coons
     Cortez Masto
     Duckworth
     Durbin
     Feinstein
     Gillibrand
     Harris
     Hassan
     Heinrich
     Hirono
     Jones
     Kaine
     King
     Klobuchar
     Leahy
     Manchin
     Markey
     Menendez
     Merkley
     Murphy
     Murray
     Peters
     Reed
     Rosen
     Sanders
     Schatz
     Schumer
     Shaheen
     Sinema
     Smith
     Stabenow
     Tester
     Udall
     Van Hollen
     Warner
     Warren
     Whitehouse
     Wyden

                             NOT GUILTY--53

     Alexander
     Barrasso
     Blackburn
     Blunt
     Boozman
     Braun
     Burr
     Capito
     Cassidy
     Collins
     Cornyn
     Cotton
     Cramer
     Crapo
     Cruz
     Daines
     Enzi
     Ernst
     Fischer
     Gardner
     Graham
     Grassley
     Hawley
     Hoeven
     Hyde-Smith
     Inhofe
     Johnson
     Kennedy
     Lankford
     Lee
     Loeffler
     McConnell
     McSally
     Moran
     Murkowski
     Paul
     Perdue
     Portman
     Risch
     Roberts
     Romney
     Rounds
     Rubio
     Sasse
     Scott (FL)
     Scott (SC)
     Shelby
     Sullivan
     Thune
     Tillis
     Toomey
     Wicker
     Young
  The CHIEF JUSTICE. On this Article of Impeachment, 47 Senators have 
pronounced Donald John Trump, President of the United States, guilty as 
charged; 53 Senators have pronounced him not guilty as charged; two-
thirds of the Senators present not having pronounced him guilty, the 
Senate adjudges that respondent, Donald John Trump, President of the 
United States, is not guilty as charged in the second Article of 
Impeachment.
  The Presiding Officer directs judgment to be entered in accordance 
with the judgment of the Senate as follows:

       The Senate, having tried Donald John Trump, President of 
     the United States, upon two articles of impeachment exhibited 
     against him by the House of Representatives, and two-thirds 
     of the Senators present not having found him guilty of the 
     charges contained therein, it is, therefore, ordered and 
     adjudged that the said Donald John Trump be, and he is 
     hereby, acquitted of the charges in said articles.

  The Chair recognizes the majority leader.


      Communication To The Secretary Of State And To The House Of 
                            Representatives

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. Chief Justice, I send an order to the desk.
  The CHIEF JUSTICE. The clerk will report the order.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       Ordered, that the Secretary be directed to communicate to 
     the Secretary of State, as provided by Rule XXII of the Rules 
     of Procedure and Practice in the Senate when sitting on 
     impeachment trials, and also to the House of Representatives, 
     the judgment of the Senate in the case of Donald John Trump, 
     and transmit a certified copy of the judgment to each.

  The CHIEF JUSTICE. Without objection, the order will be entered.
  The majority leader is recognized.


   Expression Of Gratitude To The Chief Justice Of The United States

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. Chief Justice, before this process fully 
concludes, I want to very quickly acknowledge a few of the people who 
helped the Senate fulfill our duty these past weeks.
  First and foremost, I know my colleagues join me in thanking Chief 
Justice Roberts for presiding over the Senate trial with a clear head, 
steady hand, and the forbearance that this rare occasion demands.
  (Applause.)
  We know full well that his presence as our Presiding Officer came in 
addition to, not instead of, his day job across the street, so the 
Senate thanks the Chief Justice and his staff who helped him perform 
this unique role.
  Like his predecessor, Chief Justice Rehnquist, the Senate will be 
awarding Chief Justice Roberts the golden gavel to commemorate his time 
presiding over this body. We typically award this to new Senators after 
about 100 hours in the chair, but I think we can agree that the Chief 
Justice has put in his due and then some.
  The page is delivering the gavel.
  The CHIEF JUSTICE. Thank you very much.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Of course, there are countless Senate professionals 
whose efforts were essential, and I will have more thorough facts to 
offer next week to all of those teams, from the Secretary of the 
Senate's office, to the Parliamentarian, to the Sergeant at Arms team, 
and beyond.
  But there are two more groups I would like to single out now. First, 
the two different classes of Senate pages who participated in this 
trial, their footwork and cool under pressure literally kept the floor 
running. Our current class came on board right in the middle of the 
third Presidential impeachment trial in American history and quickly 
found themselves hand-delivering 180 question cards from Senators' 
desks to the dais.
  No pressure, right, guys?
  So thank you all very much for your good work.
  (Applause.)
  Second, the fine men and women of the Capitol Police, we know that 
the safety of our democracy literally rests in their hands every single 
day, but the heightened measures surrounding the trial meant even more 
hours and even more work and even more vigilance.
  Thank you all very much for your service to this body and to the 
country.
  (Applause.)
  The CHIEF JUSTICE. The Chair recognizes the Democratic leader.
  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. Chief Justice, I join the Republican leader in 
thanking the personnel who aided the Senate over the past several 
weeks. The Capitol Police do an outstanding job, day in and day out, to 
protect the Members of this Chamber, their staffs, the press, and 
everyone who works in and visits this Capitol.
  They were asked to work extra shifts and in greater numbers provide 
additional security over the past 3 weeks. Thank you to every one of 
them.
  I, too, would like to thank those wonderful pages. I so much enjoyed 
you with your serious faces walking down right here and giving the 
Chief Justice our questions. As the leader noted, the new class of 
pages started midway in this impeachment trial. When you take a new 
job, you are usually given a few days to take stock of things and get 
up to speed.
  This class was given no such leeway, but they stepped right in and 
didn't miss a beat. Carrying hundreds of questions from U.S. Senators 
to the Chief Justice on national television is not how most of us spend 
our first week at work, but they did it with aplomb.
  I would also like to extend my personal thank you to David Hauck, 
Director of the Office of Accessibility Services; Tyler Pumphrey, 
supervisor; and Grace Ridgeway, wonderful Director of Capitol 
Facilities.
  Everyone on Grace's team worked so hard to make sure we were ready 
for impeachment: Gary Richardson, known affectionately to us as 
``Tiny,'' the chief Chamber attendant; Jim Hoover and the cabinet shop 
who built new cabinets to deprive us of the use of our electronics and 
flip phones during the trial; Brenda Byrd and her team who did a 
spectacular job of keeping the Capitol clean; and Lynden Webb and his 
team, who moved the furniture, and then moved it again and again and 
again.
  Grace, we appreciate all your hard work. Please convey our sincerest 
thanks to your staff. Thank you all, the whole staff, for your diligent 
work through many long days and late nights during this very trying 
time in our Nation's history.


Statement Of The Chief Justice Of The United States On The Senate Floor

  The CHIEF JUSTICE. At this time, the Chair also wishes to make a very 
brief statement.
  I would like to begin by thanking the majority leader and the 
Democratic leader for their support as I attempted to carry out ill-
defined responsibilities in an unfamiliar setting. They ensured that I 
had wise counsel of the Senate itself through its Secretary and her 
legislative staff.
  I am especially grateful to the Parliamentarian and her deputy for 
their unfailing patience and keen insight. I am likewise grateful to 
the Sergeant at Arms and his staff for the assistance and many 
courtesies that they extended during my period of required residency. 
Thank you all for making my presence here as comfortable as possible.
  As I depart the Chamber, I do so with an invitation to visit the 
Court. By

[[Page S939]]

long tradition and in memory of the 135 years we sat in this building, 
we keep the front row of the gallery in our courtroom open for Members 
of Congress who might want to drop by to see an argument--or to escape 
one.
  I also depart with sincere good wishes as we carry out our common 
commitment to the Constitution through the distinct roles assigned to 
us by that charter. You have been generous hosts, and I look forward to 
seeing you again under happier circumstances.
  The Chair recognizes the majority leader.

                          ____________________