Articles of Impeachment are released against President Donald Trump; local Republican congressional delegation responds

The Judiciary Committee of the United States House of Representatives, after long hours of hearings, released on Tuesday, December 10, Articles of Impeachment against President Donald Trump.
According to reports, “The first article charges him with abuse of power for pressuring Ukraine to assist him in his re-election campaign by damaging Democratic rivals. The second article charges him with obstruction of Congress for blocking testimony and refusing to provide documents in response to House subpoenas in the impeachment inquiry. If the committee approves the articles, they would go to the House floor for a debate and vote as early as next week.”
If the full House members decide to impeach President Trump, it would be the third time in American history following Andrew Johnson in 1868 and Bill Clinton in 1998.
Upon impeachment, the matter heads to the United States Senate where a trial will be conducted to decide if the president should be removed from office. Neither of the two previously impeached presidents have been removed from office by the Senate.
The impeachment process of President Trump drew reaction from two local Republican members of Louisiana’s congressional delegation including Representative Mike Johnson from the state’s 4th Congressional District which includes Evangeline Parish. Congressman Johnson, who sits on the judiciary committee, in a statement said, “Corrupting and weaponizing impeachment to generate a predetermined political outcome is simply not right or fair, and it jeopardizes this entire institution. If the American people are not able to trust the final results of the impeachment process on a matter this serious, millions of citizens lose faith in the institution and lose faith in our republic. This is a sham, and it needs to stop.”
Also reacting to the articles was Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy, who in a statement said, “House Democratic leadership turned impeachment into a series of partisan hearings searching for a crime that changed by the day. The Senate will offer President Trump a fair process, and I look forward to fairly judging the facts.”