The Latest: House Dems mulling fast-track Trump impeachment
House Democratic leaders say the House could take up articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump as soon as next week if Vice President Mike Pence and Trump’s Cabinet don’t act to remove him
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Your support makes all the difference.The Latest on the fallout of the storming of the Capitol by a mob of pro-Trump loyalists (all times local):
9:10 a.m.
House Democratic leaders say the House could take up articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump as soon as next week if Vice President Mike Pence and Trump’s Cabinet don’t act to remove him.
Assistant House Speaker Katherine Clark of Massachusetts says the House "can use procedural tools to get articles of impeachment to the House floor quickly,” as early as the coming week, if Pence doesn’t invoke the Constitution’s 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office.
Rep. James Clyburn, the No. 3 House Democrat, says he can confirm that “we have had discussions about it.” The South Carolina Democrat says he hopes Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., "would move forward if the vice president refuses to do what he is required to do under the Constitution. Everyone knows that this president is deranged.”
The 25th Amendment allows for the vice president and a majority of the Cabinet to declare a president unfit for office. That section of the amendment has never been invoked.
On Thursday, Pelosi said the House could move on impeachment if Pence and the Cabinet don’t remove Trump before his term ends on Jan. 20.
Pence hasn't publicly addressed the possibility of invoking the 25th Amendment. But that possibility may have faded after two Cabinet members resigned Thursday in protest after Trump egged on protesters who then mounted an assault on the Capitol the day before.
Clark and Clyburn spoke Friday on CNN.
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HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW A DAY AFTER PRO-TRUMP FORCES BREACHED CAPITOL:
The rampage Wednesday that has shocked the world and left the country on edge has forced the resignations of three top Capitol security officials over the failure to stop the breach. It's also led lawmakers to demand a review of operations and an FBI briefing over what they called a “terrorist attack.” And it's prompting a broader reckoning over President Donald Trump’s tenure in office and what comes next for a torn nation.
Read more:
— Capitol Police rejected offers of federal help to quell mob
— Inside account: The day my ‘second home,’ the Capitol, was overtaken by mob
— Mob at U.S. Capitol encouraged by online conspiracy theories
— EXPLAINER: Breaking down the uncertainty after Capitol siege
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HERE'S WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON:
8:40 a.m.
A police officer has died from injuries he suffered when President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the Capitol.
And his death is intensifying questions about the defeated president’s remaining days in office and the ability of the U.S. Capitol Police to secure the area.
The Capitol Police say in a statement that Officer Brian D. Sicknick died Thursday.
During Wednesday's melee, Sicknick was hit in the head with a fire extinguisher, according to two law enforcement officials said.
Those officials could not discuss the ongoing investigation publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
The officer is the fifth person to die from the attack on the Capitol.
Discussions are underway about Trump’s fitness to remain in office