On 24 September 2019, impeachment proceedings were initiated against the incumbent American president, Donald Trump.
An anonymous caller accused Donald Trump of urging Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a phone call on 25 July 2019 to take over the investigation into Joe and Hunter Biden and to make a statement that it was Ukraine – not Russia – that interfered in the 2016 presidential campaign. In return, Donald Trump promised Zelenskyy much-needed military assistance.
Strictly speaking, Donald Trump (temporarily) withheld some $391 million in military aid to Ukraine.
On 24 September 2019, the Speaker of the House of Representatives officially launched the impeachment inquiry. Several government officials refused to comply with the committee’s subpoenas, as Donald Trump had ordered. The US Constitution does not require a formal vote for impeachment, but several Republican politicians declared the process invalid without a vote.
On 10 December 2019, the Democrats announce the two charges of impeachment: Abuse of Power and Obstruction of Congressional Investigation. On 18 December 2019, the Democrat-dominated House of Representatives votes to impeach Donald Trump, formally indicting the president.
In the second stage, the Senate conducts the hearings. All senators act as jurors, take the oath and swear to be impartial.
On 16 January 2020, the Senate proceedings begin. The vote to impeach Donald Trump takes place on 5 February 2020.
The US Constitution requires at least a two-thirds majority in the Senate on at least one count of impeachment before it can convict and remove a president. The Republican majority in the Senate acquits Donald Trump on both counts.
To the German translation of this article: Erstes Verfahren zur Amtsenthebung von Donald Trump