Photo courtesy of Flickr / Gage Skidmore
Twice-impeached President Donald Trump.
Donald Trump became the first president to be impeached twice this afternoon when the House of Representative voted in favor of an article accusing him of inciting last week's U.S. Capitol riot.
Missouri's eight reps split along party lines. Democrats Cori Bush of St. Louis and Emanuel Cleaver of Kansas City were among the 232 members who voted yes. In a speech, Bush had told her colleagues it was critical to well-being of people in her district to oust the "white supremacist in chief."
Ten Republicans sided with House Democrats, but predictably none were from Missouri.
Reps Anne Wagner, Jason Smith, Vicky Hartzler, Blaine Luetkemeyer, Billy Long and Sam Graves all voted against impeachment. The vote was 232-197. The charge includes one article, a charge of incitement of an insurrection. The accusations detailed Trump's false claims that the election had been stolen through voter fraud. They cited excerpts from his January 6 speech to supporters, whom he told "if you don't fight like hell, you're not going to have a country anymore."
After his speech, thousands in the crowd then marched to the U.S. Capitol at Trump's urging. Mobs fought with Capitol Police and stormed the building, forcing lawmakers to take shelter. Five people died in the chaos, including Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, who was reportedly attacked with a fire extinguisher.
The riots interrupted Congress' vote to certify the results of the presidential election, which Trump and his supporters had opposed. When Congress resumed that night, five of the six Missouri House Republicans still voted to object to the election results, despite the deadly mayhem.
Wagner was the only of the Missouri Republican reps to vote to approve the results on January 6. This afternoon, she rejoined her GOP colleagues in opposing impeachment.
In a statement, she said she supported censuring Trump but not impeachment.
"President Trump’s statements during and in the immediate aftermath of last week’s assault on democracy were antithetical to the leadership our nation desperately needed in a time of crisis," she said.
She said she didn't think it made sense to hold an impeachment trial, given that Trump's presidency is set to end in little more than a week.
"A consequential vote of this nature, something that has happened rarely in our nation’s history, should only be taken after the appropriate investigations and a complete airing of the facts so our vote can be fully informed," Wagner said in her statement. "This is a necessary step for impeachment that has been bypassed."
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is not expected to call senators back until January 19 — the day before President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration — at the earliest.
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