Washington: The United States Senate cleared Donald Trump of both chargesin its impeachment trial of the president, bringing to an end theimpeachment saga that has consumed Washington since the House ofRepresentatives launched its inquiry into the Trump’s actions lastSeptember.
In a 52-48 vote, the Senate found Trump not guilty of abusing his power ofoffice. The Senate voted 53-47 to acquit the president on the charge ofobstruction of Congress.
Democrats had accused Trump of abusing his power by orchestrating apressure campaign to get Ukraine to investigate his political rival, formerVice President Joe Biden.
They also accused him of obstructing Congress for refusing to participatein the impeachment inquiry. Trump denied any wrongdoing, repeatedly callingthe impeachment a “hoax”.
Trump’s legal defence in the Senate trial had argued that House Democratsdid not sufficiently prove that Trump engaged in the pressure campaign.
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Even if Trump did what House Democrats accused him of, many Republicanssaid it was not a serious enough offence to remove him from office or banhim from running again with only nine months to go before the next USpresidential election.
Several Republican senators said the House proved its case and theyexpressed disapproval of the president’s conduct.
