Summary
President Donald Trump's actions to prod Ukraine to pursue investigations that could benefit him politically represent impeachable offenses, constitutional law experts called by Democrats testified to the U.S. Congress Wednesday as lawmakers laid the groundwork for formal charges against Trump.
At a House of Representatives Judiciary Committee hearing featuring political theatrics, three law professors chosen by the Democrats made clear that they believed Trump's actions constituted impeachable offenses including abuse of power, bribery, obstruction of Congress and obstruction of justice.
Trump has denied wrongdoing.
Democrats have accused Trump of abusing his power by withholding $391 million in security aid to Ukraine -- a vulnerable U.S. ally facing Russian aggression -- as leverage to pressure Kyiv into conducting the two investigations politically beneficial to Trump and for granting Zelenskiy a coveted White House visit.
The Judiciary Committee heard from the professors on how Trump's actions compared with those of two former presidents -- Republican Richard Nixon, who resigned after the House launched the impeachment process, and Democrat Bill Clinton, who was impeached by the House but not removed by the Senate.
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