In the impeachment proceedings against Donald Trump, the decision is pending today: acquittal expected. Trump could benefit, Democrats with somber prophecy.
- Tonight, the U.S. Senate will rule on President Donald Trump's impeachment .
- An acquittal seems certain - important witnesses were no longer heard.
- Prosecutors are concerned about the next election.
Washington - If the US Senate decides to impeach Donald Trump this evening (around 10 p.m.), no one expects a surprise: there will likely be an acquittal .
The Senate will decide separately on two charges today - to find him guilty, at least 67 senators would have to vote for one of the two charges. The Democrats who oppose Trump lack 20 votes - but it is certain that none of the Republicans will turn away from Trump.
Donald Trump / Impeachment: Ukraine cause burdens him
Last Friday there could have been a turnaround : The Senate was asked to vote on the admission of additional witnesses who could have incriminated Trump. But only two Republican senators wanted to hear these witnesses - too little to summon the committee.
The Democrats accuse Trump of two points: he is said to have urged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Selenskyj to investigate his political rival Joe Biden , thereby abusing his power and blocking the Congress investigation.
Trump's impeachment process might even have helped
The expected defeat of the Democrats could even have helped Trump in the end - according to a poll by the opinion research firm Gallup, Trump currently has the highest approval rate of his scandalous first term in office (source: dpa). So it was hardly surprising that Trump bristled with self-praise in his one and a half hour speech on the state of the nation and made no mention of the impeachment process.
The quick end without hearing any other witnesses also plays into the hands of the Republicans : they can now concentrate fully on the election campaign.
Impeachment proceedings against Donald Trump: Prosecutors remain concerned
Trump's defense has retreated to their last defense:
He's guilty as sin, but the voters should clean up this mess.
We must ask ourselves:
Can we trust the President will not continue to try to cheat in that very election?
The sad and incontestable answer is:
No, we can't. pic.twitter.com/qbFR4YNyMj
"He is guilty" - that is how prosecutor Adam Schiff summarized his findings from the impeachment proceedings . On Twitter he now passes the ball to the voters: "They should clear up this mess". His final appeal is tough - one has to ask the question: “Can we trust that the President will not continue to try to cheat in the elections? The sad and irrefutable answer is: No, we cannot. "
The gaps between the political camps in the US could not be deeper after the impeachment process: Nancy Pelosi, a bitter opponent of Trump, publicly tore up a speech manuscript by Trump. In opinion polls, about half of US citizens reject Trump's leadership style, the other half supports how Trump performs his job as president (source: dpa).
* Merkur.de is part of the Germany-wide Ippen-Digital editors network.
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List of rubric lists: © REUTERS / Leah Millis
