Watch Live: President Trump Speaks About Impeachment Acquittal Around 9am

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump  will talk about his acquittal in the Impeachment Trial this morning. We will carry the President live starting around 9am on Fm News 101 and KXL dot com.

(AP) – The U.S. Senate has acquitted President Donald Trump of impeachment, ending only the third presidential trial in American history with votes that split the country and tested civic norms.

The proceedings also are feeding the tumultuous 2020 run for the White House.

A majority of senators expressed unease with Trump’s pressure campaign on Ukraine that resulted in the two articles of impeachment.

But there was nowhere near the two-thirds vote necessary in the Republican-held Senate to remove the president from office.

He was found not guilty of both articles of impeachment.

Reaction from Oregon’s delegation came in quickly:

 

U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today released the following statement on the U.S. Senate’s vote to acquit Donald Trump on two articles of impeachment:

“Today I voted to remove Donald Trump, for his abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. His whole defense amounted to a fiction. The president was not fighting corruption in Ukraine, he was causing it.

“There is no doubt in my mind that Donald Trump misused his office to extort a foreign nation to drum up sham investigations of his political rival.

“Donald Trump has declared himself above the law, and Republican senators have voted to let him run wild, no matter the cost to our nation. They are now on the record saying politicians can get away with selling out American interests to rig an election. There is no check on politicians willing to fracture alliances, fabricate investigations and amplify foreign propaganda if it serves their political or financial interests. I hope our democracy is strong enough to survive this shameful result.”

 

“President Trump has failed the American people,” said Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici. “He repeatedly put his own self-interest before our country’s national security and the needs of our communities. Trump is impeached by the House forever, a majority of the American public believe he committed an impeachable offense, and new evidence continues to emerge that he abused the power of his office when he asked Ukraine to interfere in the U.S. election by investigating a political rival. 

“I am deeply disappointed in the Senate. Although there were many votes to convict, including one from a Republican Senator, too many failed to put country before party. And despite new evidence coming to light since the House impeachment proceeding, they did not call any witnesses regardless of bipartisan support for doing so. Acquitting Trump without a fair trial sets a dangerous precedent for current and future Presidents to exploit. History will judge the Senate for failing to uphold its Constitutional duty to provide checks and balances. No one is above the law, including the President. 

“As a co-equal branch of government, the House will continue to fight back against this administration’s anti-democratic agenda and stand up for the rule of law. Today’s acquittal is not the end of our work to protect our country and advance policies that benefit all.”

Senate Rs now go into their election cycle tarnished by the shameless abdication of their duty. The facts remain the same: Trump compromised nat’l security, obstructed Congress, & violated the Constitution.

This sham trial is ending today, but Trump will be impeached forever.

— Earl Blumenauer (@repblumenauer) February 5, 2020

Today, Representative Greg Walden (R-Hood River) released the following statement after the Senate voted to acquit President Donald Trump:

“In December, I opposed both the House vote to impeach President Trump and the vote to send the articles of impeachment to the Senate. I felt that the justifiably high standards for overturning the outcome of an election had not been met. Nullifying the vote of the American people demands two things: a bipartisan and fair process to determine wrongdoing, and a criminal offense worthy of overturning the outcome of the voters’ will. Neither of which has occurred.

“If facts matter, and I believe they do, then the House impeachment managers failed to prove the existence of any criminal offense. Overturning the outcome of a presidential election is a big deal and should not be undertaken to settle a partisan political grudge.  The House managers failed to make their case.  In the end, this partisan exercise only failed the American people and many important issues have been on hold during this process. It is long past time for Congress to get back to the work of the American people, like lowering prescription drug prices, solving surprise medical billing, continuing the fight against the opioid epidemic, and improving forest management policies to address catastrophic wildfires.  It is time to move on.”