Haley is far from the first to question Trump’s mental fitness, but at a rally in Keene, New Hampshire on Saturday she brought up the bizarre incident to voters, saying: “I’m not saying anything derogatory, but when you’re dealing with the pressures of a presidency, we can’t have someone else that we question whether they’re mentally fit to do this.”

The day before, at Trump’s rally, the former president seemed to repeatedly and incorrectly say that Haley was in charge of Capital security on Jan. 6, 2021, the day when a mob of Trump supporters stormed the building in an effort to stop the presidential certification of Democrat Joe Biden following Trump’s 2020 election loss. 

It was actually Pelosi who was in charge of security at the time, with Haley not even being in office. 

Trump’s claim that Pelosi turned down security that his administration offered her has also been debunked. A special House committee empaneled to probe the attack found no evidence to support his claim.

“Nikki Haley, you know they, do you know they destroyed all of the information, all of the evidence, everything, deleted and destroyed all of it. All of it because of lots of things like Nikki Haley is in charge of security,” Trump told supporters at the Concord rally. “We offered her 10,000 people, soldiers, National Guard, whatever they want. They turned it down. They don’t want to talk about that. These are very dishonest people.”

Responding to Trump’s public gaffe on X (formerly Twitter), his senior campaign advisor Chris LaCivita tried to play it off writing, “Nancy ….Nikki ….its a distinction without a difference.”

How old is too old?

Since launching her campaign 11 months ago, Haley, 52, has called for mental competency tests for politicians over 75, and has suggested it’s time for a “new generational leader”. 

Trump, who is 77 himself, is known for frequently throwing digs at the age of Democratic President Joe Biden, 81, saying he’s mentally unfit for office.

In September, however, Trump also mixed up Biden with former President Barack Obama, saying “with Obama, we won an election that everyone said couldn’t be won.”

At his rally on Saturday night in Manchester, Trump said that he took a cognitive test and “aced it.”

“I’ll let you know when I go bad. I really think I’ll be able to tell you,” he added. “I feel my mind is stronger now than it was 25 years ago. Is that possible?”

Ahead of the 2024 US election, age is shaping up to be an important factor as two white men over 75-years-old look to be front-runners for both major parties. 

An August poll from The Associated Press– NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that 77 per cent of US adults, including 69 per cent of Democrats view Biden as too old for presidential office. The Same poll that over half (51 per cent) of adults, including 28 per cent of Republicans view Trump as too old.

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This comes a day after the Republicans officially won control of the chamber in the 2022 midterms, and three weeks after a violent assault on her husband, Paul, at their San Francisco home. 

In her speech, Pelosi said she’s stepping down as Speaker but will continue to represent her San Francisco district in the House. 

“With great confidence in our caucus, I will not seek reelection to Democratic leadership in the next Congress. For me the hour has come for a new generation to lead the Democratic caucus that I so deeply respect, ” Pelosi said. 

Her decision to step down was expected by many on Capitol Hill and was impacted by her success in helping Democrats defy historical expectations to perform better in the 2022 midterms than anticipated.

The violent attack on her husband also had an effect on the decision. Last month, an intruder broke into the couple’s San Francisco home echoing the chants of the pro-Trump rioters at the Capitol on January 6, 2021– asking “Where is Nancy?”– as they hunted for Pelosi to try to overthrow Joe Biden’s election victory over Trump.  

In her speech on Thursday, she warned that democracy is “majestic, but it is fragile” and said voters in 2022 sent a message to congress that they wouldn’t support those who supported violence or insurrection. 

She also pointed out that when she first entered Congress in 1987 there were 12 women in the Democratic Caucus and now there are 90, saying “And we want more.”

There is a desire by many for Democrats to elect a younger set of leaders to replace Pelosi, who is 82, and two other House Democratic leaders in their 80s.

Twice elected to the speakership, Pelosi has led through many significant moments under four US Presidents and during her speech on Thursday, she noted she’d enjoyed working with three of them, excluding Trump.

Pelosi is credited with steering a divided caucus through difficult times, including helping the passage of the Affordable Care Act with President Barack Obama, the impeachments of President Donald Trump and helping President Biden’s legislative accomplishments– a pandemic aid bill, a bipartisan infrastructure bill, legislation boosting production of semiconductor chips, a measure lowering prescription drug costs and investing in climate programs.

In 2007, when she first took the gavel as Speaker of the House, Pelosi surrounded herself with children on the floor. Her mantra has been “for the children”, which she has said guides her focus on progressive policies like health care, child care and climate change. 

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The 82-year old landed in Songshan Airport in the country’s capital, Taipei, late on Tuesday night, accompanied by a delegation of six fellow American lawmakers. 

On Tuesday night, Taiwan’s iconic building, Taipei 101, lit up with messages flashing: “THANK YOU” – “TW (heart) US” – “Speaker Pelosi” – “Welcome to Taiwan.”

Pelosi arrived on a U.S. Air Force transport plane from Malaysia, as part of an Asia tour that includes visits to Singapore, South Korea and Japan. 

Pelosi is the most-senior U.S. political leader to visit Taiwan since 1997, when then-House speaker Republican Newt Gingrich visited.

Taiwan’s foreign minister, Joseph Wu, and the top U.S. representative in Taiwan, Sandra Oudkirk, greeted Pelosi and her delegation at their arrival. 

Pelosi’s visit signals U.S commitment to the self-ruled island of almost 24 million people — but China is furious, condemning it as a threat to the recent stability in the Taiwan Strait, despite tensions elevating since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

China does not consider Taiwan a sovereign nation and has indicated the use of military force to bring it under its control. 

Taiwan’s presidential office has announced Pelosi will meet with President Tsai Ing-wen this morning where the pair expect to have lunch together.

Shortly after landing, Pelosi made a statement, saying: “Our congressional delegation’s visit to Taiwan honours America’s unwavering commitment to supporting Taiwan’s vibrant democracy.”  

“America’s solidarity with the 23 million people of Taiwan is more important today than ever, as the world faces a choice between autocracy and democracy.” 

In an opinion piece published in Washington Post after landing, titled “Why I’m leading a congressional delegation to Taiwan,” Pelosi said her visit “should be seen as an unequivocal statement that America stands with Taiwan, our democratic partner, as it defends itself and its freedom”.

She praised Taiwan’s commitment to democratic government, citing the Taiwan Relations Act, which passed 43 years ago, describing it as “one of the most important pillars of US foreign policy in the Asia Pacific,” that “set out America’s commitment to a democratic Taiwan, providing the framework for an economic and diplomatic relationship that would quickly flourish into a key partnership”.

“[the Act] fostered a deep friendship rooted in shared interests and values: self-determination and self-government, democracy and freedom, human dignity and human rights”.

In her op ed, Pelosi, the second in the line of succession to the U.S. presidency, also criticised China’s role in causing rising tensions with Taiwan in the past few years. 

“We cannot stand by as the CCP [Chinese Communist Party] proceeds to threaten Taiwan – and democracy itself,” Pelosi wrote.

“[China] has ramped up patrols of bombers, fighter jets and surveillance aircraft near and even over Taiwan’s air defense zone.” 

“We must stand by Taiwan, which is an island of resilience.”

Pelosi added that China’s Department of Defence have indicated their army will “likely [be] preparing for a contingency to unify Taiwan with the PRC by force”.

Shortly after Pelosi’s arrival in Taipei on Tuesday night, China’s foreign ministry criticised her visit, saying it “has a severe impact on the political foundation of China-U.S. relations, and seriously infringes upon China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

In recent weeks, Chinese warplanes have been seen flying close to the median line dividing the Taiwan Strait, according to sources obtained by Reuters. 

Chinese state news agency Xinhua has reported live-fire drills and other exercises would be conducted by the Chinese Maritime Safety Administration around Taiwan between Thursday to Sunday, while the Chinese military has said it would direct joint air and sea drills near Taiwan beginning this week. 

The defence ministry of Taiwan said its armed forces have “reinforced” the island’s alertness level, after more than twenty Chinese aircraft were seen entering its air defence identification zone on Tuesday. 

White House national security spokesman John Kirby said at a White House briefing that the U.S “is not going to be intimidated” by China’s threats and “will not engage in sabre-rattling.”

“We will continue to support Taiwan, defend a free and open Indo-Pacific and seek to maintain communication with Beijing,” Kirby said.

Days before Pelosi’s visit, Kirby told reporters there was “no reason” for China to turn a visit into a “pretext to increase aggressive military activity”.

“China appears to be positioning itself to potentially take further steps in the coming days,” Kirby said. “These potential steps . . . could include military provocations, such as firing missiles in the Taiwan Strait.”

“We’re going to watch this very, very closely. We’re going to make sure that she has a safe and secure visit.”

On the same day, US secretary of state Antony Blinken advised China to act responsibly and “not to engage in any escalation,” while China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said “The Chinese People’s Liberation Army will not sit back.”

According to Reuters, sources close to Pelosi said she will meet outspoken activists against China’s human rights abuses during her visit in Taiwan. 

Russia’s Foreign ministry spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, has since come out to condemn Pelosi’s visit, calling the U.S “a state provocateur.”

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How it began

Last Wednesday, Donald Trump spoke at a ‘Save America’ rally in Washington D.C. as Congress was readying itself to confirm the election results and certify Joe Biden as the 46th president of the United States.

In his speech, the outgoing president claimed that big tech companies and the media had “rigged an election.”

“We will never concede,” he said. “They rigged it like they’ve never rigged an election before…we won. We won in a landslide. This was a landslide.”

“All of us here today do not want to see our election victory stolen by emboldened radical left Democrats, which is what they’re doing and stolen by the fake news media,” he said before describing Biden’s win as a “disgrace”. 

“I’ve been in two elections,” he said. “I won them both and the second one, I won much bigger than the first. I could go on and on about this fraud that took place in every state and all of these legislatures want this back. I don’t want to do it to you because I love you.” 

“We will not let them silence your voices,” he continued. “We’re not going to let it happen.” Trump went on to encourage his supporters to walk down to Capitol Hill. 

“After this, we’re going to walk down and I’ll be there with you…you have to show strength, and you have to be strong.”

The Riots

After his address, thousands of Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol building, which turned violent soon after it began. Rioters broke through barricades and security checkpoints, entering the building and smashing things and releasing tear-gas bombs. Lawmakers inside the building were forced into lockdown and hid in small rooms. 

Representative Jim Himes tweeted that police had asked lawmakers inside the building to put on gas masks as tear gas was being released in the rotunda. Rioters continued to traverse the building carrying Confederate flags and looting the offices belonging to senators and congresspersons. 

Lawmakers called on Trump to instruct his supporters to leave the Capitol. Soon after, Trump posted a video of himself addressing his supporters on Twitter, telling them to go home, but continued to say that the election was “stolen” from him and that he “loved” them. The video was later removed. 

At 7pm, Twitter locked Trump out of his account for over 12 hours due to “repeated and severe violations” of its civic integrity policy. For his account to be unlocked, Trump had to delete the video he’d posted earlier. 

A little after 3pm, Trump tweeted, “I am asking for everyone at the US Capitol to remain peaceful. No violence! Remember, WE are the Party of Law & Order – respect the Law and our great men and women in Blue. Thank you!”

Vice President Mike Pence tweeted, “The violence and destruction taking place at the US Capitol Must Stop and it Must Stop Now. Anyone involved must respect Law Enforcement officers and immediately leave the building.” 

Washington D.C’s Mayor Muriel Bowser ordered a 6pm curfew. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi released a joint statement, urging Trump “to demand that all Protesters leave the U.S. Capitol and Capitol Grounds immediately.”

Ashli Babbitt, a 35-year old Air Force veteran and Californian was shot during a standoff between police and protesters in a stairwell outside the House chamber. She was one of five people who died during the protests. The Guardian reported that Babbitt’s Twitter account broadcasted conspiracy theories that portrayed Democratic lawmakers as evil pedophiles.

Calls for impeachment from Nancy Pelosi 

House Democrat and Representative James E. Clyburn of South Carolina said yesterday that the chamber could vote as early as Tuesday on an article of impeachment charging President Trump with inciting a violent mob that attacked the Capitol.

Clyburn claimed that many House Democrats believe Trump must be impeached for his conduct though admit that leaders were still attempting to work out how to punish him without disturbing the first few days of Biden’s presidency.

In an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Clyburn suggested Pelosi was thinking about impeaching Trump but only once Biden completes his first 100 days in office. The Senate is required to immediately begin a trial when it receives impeachment articles and cannot begin one without them.

Clyburn declared the country should “… give President-elect Biden the 100 days he needs to get his agenda off and running…and maybe we will send the articles sometime after that.”

Over the weekend, Speaker Pelosi spoke on 60 Minutes, saying that if Trump pardons himself, “He can only pardon himself on federal offences. He cannot pardon himself from state offences and that’s where he is being investigated.”

Pelosi also said that one of the motivations people have for advocating for impeachment is so that Trump is barred from running for the White House in the future.

“There is strong support in the congress for impeaching the president for the second time.” 

Pelosi will hold a conference call over Zoom on Monday (US time) with fellow Democrats and several House lieutenants to strategies on their response to the riots. The call is scheduled to take place right after the introduction on the House floor of an impeachment resolution against President Donald Trump.

Yesterday, Pelosi accused the Trump supporters of choosing “their whiteness over democracy.” During an online video meeting with her San Francisco constituents, she criticised the majority white mob, saying “It has been an epiphany for the world to see that there are people in our country led by this president, for the moment, who have chosen their whiteness over democracy.”

“The complicity, not only the complicity, the instigation of the president of United States, must and will be addressed,” she said.

Susan Collins, a Republican Senator for Maine, is reported to have been “outraged” by the violence at the Capitol, though stopped short of commenting on the impeachment rumours.

On Saturday evening, Collins’ Communications Director Annie Clark shared a statement with NEWS CENTER Maine which said, “Senator Collins has talked to many of her colleagues. All of them, including Senator Collins, are outraged about the violence at the Capitol and the President’s role.”

Calls to retain data on mobile phones

Several Democratic politicians have called on mobile carriers to preserve social media content related to the incident in Washington D.C last week.

Over the weekend, US senator Mark Warner, a Democrat and incoming chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, urged mobile carriers to keep content and associated metadata connected to the riot.

Warner sent letters to tech companies, though the letter was addressed directly to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, emphasising how the rioters took the time to document the event and posted them via social media and text messages “to celebrate their disdain for our democratic process”.

“The United States Capitol is now a crime scene,” he wrote. “The FBI and other law enforcement agencies are currently investigating the events of that day, and trying to piece together what happened and the perpetrators involved… The texts, videos and pictures posted to your platforms…are critical evidence in helping to bring these rioters to justice.”

Donations end 

The world’s largest hotel company, Marriott International Inc, announced over the weekend that they plan to suspend donations to US lawmakers who voted against certifying President-elect Joe Biden’s victory last week.

Marriott spokeswoman Connie Kim confirmed a report in the political newsletter, Popular Information that donations will cease immediately.

“We have taken the destructive events at the Capitol to undermine a legitimate and fair election into consideration and will be pausing political giving from our Political Action Committee to those who voted against certification of the election.” 

Arne Sorenson, the President and CEO at Marriott International Inc. also wrote a letter originally sent as an email to Marriott International associates and later published on LinkedIn.

“I recognise that we have associates who have very different views on the results of this election and the direction of the United States,” Sorenson wrote.

“We serve guests who also have a wide range of opinions and perspectives. In the US, we can use our voice and our vote to share our views. But what we can’t do is trample the Constitution; we can’t use violence and terror to force an agenda. It’s not who we are – and I would offer, it’s not what the vast majority of Americans want.”

In the last 24 hours, Pelosi announced in a letter to colleagues that the House of Representatives “will proceed” to bring legislation to impeach Trump.

“In protecting our Constitution and our Democracy, we will act with urgency, because this President represents an imminent threat to both,” Pelosi wrote in her letter to House Democrats. “As the days go by, the horror of the ongoing assault on our democracy perpetrated by this President is intensified and so is the immediate need for action.”

Image credit: Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images

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Since 2005, the report claimed that Trump has only paid income taxes for 5 years, paying more to other countries including $145,400 in India and $156,824 in the Philippines three years ago. The reason? Apparently, Trump reported losing more money than he was making. 

The findings, which were gathered through information “provided by sources with legal access to it”, also reported that Trump wrote off more than $70,000 in hair-styling costs as “business expenses” during his time on his television show, The Apprentice.

“He is personally responsible for loans and other debts totaling $421 million,” the article explained, “… with most of it coming due within four years. Should he win re-election, his lenders could be placed in the unprecedented position of weighing whether to foreclose on a sitting president.” 

The report also revealed that a handful of Trump’s businesses received funds from “lobbyists, foreign officials and others seeking face time, access or favour” from him.

On Monday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that Trump’s reported debts raise “a national security question.”

“There is no sense of decency,” she said of Trump’s tax evasions. “This is a president who wants parades of military armament and the military paying homage to him in front of the White House like he’s some kind of a dictator, and yet is he paying for any of that? The protection of our country? $750?  Yeah, it’s a disdain for America’s working families. It’s not right, but our responsibility is to protect and defend, and we have to make sure we know what exposure the President of the United States has and what an impact it has on national security decisions for our country.” 

Speaking to MSNBC’s television anchor, Andrea Mitchell, Pelosi said it was “strange” that Trump paid much more to other governments than to his own in the same year.

“This president appears to have over $400 million in debt … To whom? Different countries? What is the leverage they have? So for me, this is a national security question.” 

“The fact that you could have a sitting president who owes hundreds of millions of dollars that he’s personally guaranteed to lenders, and we don’t know who these lenders are,” Pelosi continued, insinuating that Trump might owe something to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“What does Putin have on the president politically? Personally? Financially?” Pelosi asked. “The question is what does Putin have on the President politically, personally, financially and in every way that the President would try to undermine our commitment to NATO, give away the store to Russia and Syria, try to cast blame on Ukraine for interfering in our elections when he knows full well, with the consensus from the intelligence community, that it is Russia. The list goes on and on, the annexation in Crimea, and the rest of that the President just turns away from.”

“So, he says he likes Putin, and Putin likes him. Well, what’s the connection? We’ll see. The fact is, whatever that leads to, the fact is over $400 million in leverage that somebody has over the President of the United States. If he were going to be a President – a federal appointee that would be a major obstacle. Because someone has leverage over you in terms of the national security.”

“Let’s come back to, we take an oath to protect and defend,” Pelosi said. “This President is the Commander-in-Chief.  He has exposure to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars, to whom? The public has a right to know.”

Alan Garten, the attorney representing The Trump Organisation, responded to the NY Times’ report by saying that “most, if not all, of the facts” reported appeared to be inaccurate. On Monday, Trump took to Twitter to call the report “fake news” and attacked the media for bringing up his taxes and “other nonsense with illegally obtained information & only bad intent”.

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Pelosi’s comments come after Trump refused to commit to respecting the results of the 2020 presidential election in an interview with Fox News on Sunday.  

“There is a process,” Pelosi told MSNBC’s Morning Joe program.

“It has nothing to do with if the certain occupant of the White House doesn’t feel like moving and has to be fumigated out of there because the presidency is the presidency.”

In the Fox News interview with Chris Wallace, Trump said he’d “have to see”, when asked if he would accept the results of the election.

“No. I have to see,” Trump said. “Look you – I have to see. No, I’m not going to just say ‘yes.’ I’m not going to say ‘no.’ And I didn’t last time, either.”

“Whether he knows it yet or not, he will be leaving,” Pelosi said. “Just because he might not want to move out of the White House doesn’t mean we won’t have an inauguration ceremony to inaugurate a duly elected president of the United States.”

Pelosi said she had a continuation of government meeting last week, noting she is, as the Speaker of the House of Representatives, “second in line to the presidency”, behind Trump and Vice President Mike Pence.

“I say to them, ‘This is never going to happen.’ God willing, it never will. But there is a process,” she said. “The presidency is the presidency. It’s not geography or location.”

In his interview, Trump also impressed, for the second time this month, that the virus is “going to disappear” and that he’s “been right probably more than anybody else”.

He claimed mail-in voting, which is expected to be widely used in some states to avoid the spread of COVID-19, will “rig” the upcoming election results.

Trump then said that his Democrat rival Joe Biden is “not competent” to be president, saying Biden is “mentally shot” and “doesn’t know he’s alive”.

These comments come as Trump faces plummeting approval ratings and dissatisfaction with his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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She then cast the torn up pieces of paper aside.

Speaker Pelosi just ripped the president's speech in half. #SOTU pic.twitter.com/AMeAyJ6Ty8

— 11th Hour (@11thHour) February 5, 2020

Pelosi said afterwards ripping up the speech was “the courteous thing to do considering the alternatives” and that there wasn’t a single page ‘with truth on it’.

From colleague Marisa Schultz. Pelosi on ripping up Trump speech: “I tore it up. I was trying to find one page with truth on it. I couldn’t."

— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) February 5, 2020

It came after President Trump appeared to reject Pelosi’s handshake at the beginning of proceedings, when he handed copies of the speech to Pelosi and the Vice-President Mike Pence.

Democrats will never stop extending the hand of friendship to get the job done #ForThePeople. We will work to find common ground where we can, but will stand our ground where we cannot. #SOTU pic.twitter.com/ELJqR9q4xD

— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) February 5, 2020

Pelosi highlighted this snub in a tweet she sent shortly after Trump’s State of the Union address, with a photo showing the President ignoring her offer of a handshake.

The White House was quick to denigrate Pelosi’s actions, accusing her of undermining the Americans ‘honoured’ in Trump’s speech.

Speaker Pelosi just ripped up:

One of our last surviving Tuskegee Airmen.

The survival of a child born at 21 weeks.

The mourning families of Rocky Jones and Kayla Mueller.

A service member's reunion with his family.

That's her legacy.

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 5, 2020

Pelosi has come under fierce criticism from Trump supporters and republicans with the rebuke being described as childish, classless and pathetic.

The irony of Donald Trump’s defenders calling out childish behaviour is not lost.

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The trial is forecasted to last at least several weeks, and will no doubt attract breathless media coverage as Donald Trump faces weeks of public scrutiny over allegations that he solicited foreign assistance in the 2020 presidential election, abused the power of his office and obstructed a congressional inquiry.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi before signing articles of impeachment:

"When the managers walk down the hallway, we will cross a threshold in history."pic.twitter.com/DZidzOeutI

— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) January 15, 2020

It formally commenced on Thursday, US time, when House managers formally presented the articles in a ceremony to the Senate chamber. On Wednesday night, the House voted to approve the impeachment managers selected by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and to send the articles of impeachment to the Senate for trial.

This evening, the House’s Managers delivered articles of impeachment against President Trump to the U.S. Senate ahead of its upcoming trial. #DefendOurDemocracy pic.twitter.com/b635WnVkxB

— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) January 16, 2020

Pelosi named the seven impeachment managers  who would prosecute the case for Trump’s removal in the Republican-controlled Senate. They included Representatives Adam B. Schiff of California, the chairman of the Intelligence Committee, Zoe Lofgren of California, Hakeem Jeffries of New York, Val B. Demings of Florida, Jason Crow of Colorado, Sylvia R. Garcia of Texas and Jerrold Nadler of New York, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee.

The seven managers were filmed walking across the Capitol with the two charges of high crimes and misdemeanours against the president enclosed in blue folders.

Pelosi took to Twitter to publicise the seven managers, with a brief biography on each.

The Managers of the impeachment trial of the President are public servants committed to protecting our Constitution – and have the litigation and courtroom experience necessary to execute this task. They will #DefendOurDemocracy. pic.twitter.com/nsGtEVh59n

— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) January 15, 2020

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

Tune in as the Impeachment Managers cross the U.S. Capitol for the exhibition of the House-passed articles of impeachment. https://t.co/9z9r5xLE1s

— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) January 16, 2020

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

In a pointed move yesterday, Pelosi also handed out souvenir pens to members of Congress. Writing her signature on the impeachment bill in tiny increments, she then handed the multiple pens out to excited members– a move which has incited Trump allies.

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The House is preparing to cast a historic vote on two articles of impeachment against President Trump. The first is for abuse of power, related to his dealings with Ukraine, and the second is for obstructing the congressional inquiry.

Democrats hold 233 seats in the 435-member House of Representatives, to the Republican’s 197 seats. The vote is largely expected to fall along party lines and with only a simple majority vote needed, impeachment is the most likely outcome.

Asked by a reporter if he would be watching the vote in the House, Trump said he wouldn’t be.

“I’m not watching. I have not seen it. Look, it’s a hoax, the whole impeachment thing is a hoax. We look forward to getting onto the Senate. We’re not entitled to lawyers, we’re not entitled to witnesses, we’re not entitled to anything in the House,” he said.

Only two US presidents have been impeached before, Andrew Johnson in 1868 and Bill Clinton in 1998. Both survived the Senate trial, so neither was removed from office. Richard Nixon resigned before he could be impeached.

On the eve of the impeachment vote in the House, Trump sent a six-page letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, airing his grievances about the process.

He argued that “more due process was afforded to those accused in the Salem Witch Trials” and that Pelosi had “cheapened the importance of the very ugly word, impeachment.”

Tune in as the House continues to debate impeachment ahead of tonight’s vote to #DefendOurDemocracy from the President’s abuses of his power. https://t.co/NeKukBx14k

— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) December 18, 2019

What happens next

If Trump is impeached by the House, the case will then move to Senate. The general consensus is the Senate will start its trial as early as the second week of January 2020, after winter recess.

In the Senate trial, Trump can either be convicted or acquitted. In the trial, both sides will present their case to the senators, who act as jurors. Chief Justice John Roberts will preside as judge.

Two-thirds of the senate is needed to remove Trump from office, which is unlikely, given the Republicans enjoy a 53-47 majority.

If Trump is impeached by the House, but acquitted in the Senate, which is the most likely outcome, Trump will remain in office and will head to the election in 2020.

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In an interview on CBS’ Face The Nation program, Pelosi said that Trump “knows full well that he’s in that office way over his head and so he has to diminish everyone else.”

Pelosi’s comments come after Trump launched a Twitter attack on former U.S Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch, during her impeachment inquiry testimony last week.

“Everywhere Marie Yovanovitch went turned bad,” Trump tweeted.

“She started off in Somalia, how did that go? Then fast forward to Ukraine, where the new Ukrainian President spoke unfavorably about her in my second phone call with him. It is a U.S. President’s absolute right to appoint ambassadors.”

Everywhere Marie Yovanovitch went turned bad. She started off in Somalia, how did that go? Then fast forward to Ukraine, where the new Ukrainian President spoke unfavorably about her in my second phone call with him. It is a U.S. President’s absolute right to appoint ambassadors.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 15, 2019

Pelosi says Trump knows Yovanovitch’s strength and tweeted the insults “trying to undermine it.”

“Of course, presidents appoint ambassadors, but people don’t insult people, especially when they’re giving testimony before the Congress of the United States,” Pelosi continued in the interview.

“I think even his most ardent supporters have to honestly admit this is the wrong thing for the president to do,” she said.

President Trump is in over his head. Now, he is abusing his power and lashing out. That is why we must #DefendOurDemocracy. pic.twitter.com/4p9g0xBKd9

— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) November 17, 2019

Some Democrats have interpreted Trump’s attack on Yovanovitch as witness tampering or as an attempt to intimidate her. The White House maintains that the comments are just his opinion and have denied it was an act of intimidation.

“The words of the president weigh a tonne. They are very significant and he should not frivolously throw out insults, but that’s what he does,” Pelosi added.

In the same interview, Pelosi went on to say the President’s actions were far worse than those of former President Richard Nixon, who resigned from office before he could be impeached.

“But it’s really a sad thing. I mean, what the President did was so much worse than even what Richard Nixon did, that at some point Richard Nixon cared about the country enough to recognize that this could not continue,” Pelosi said.

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Instead, it’s become an iconic symbol of Pelosi’s continued presence as the most powerful woman in US politics and her unmatched ability to use the President’s own rhetoric against him.

In the photo, Pelosi is the only woman at the table. She stands directly across from the seated President, her finger pointed straight at him.

It’s a powerful moment and one that was captured during a high-tension, White House briefing regarding Trump’s decision to withdraw US troops from Syria, effectively abandoning Kurdish forces.

Pelosi, along with fellow Democrats Chuck Schumer and Steny Hoyer, walked out of the meeting and said the president had a “very serious meltdown” during discussions.

“I pray for the president all the time…I think now we have to pray for his health – this was a very serious meltdown on the part of the president,” Pelosi told reporters.

She added that Democrats “couldn’t continue in the meeting because he was just not relating to the reality of it”.

Trump then tweeted the photo with the caption, ‘Nervous Nancy’s unhinged meltdown’.

Nervous Nancy’s unhinged meltdown! pic.twitter.com/RDeUI7sfe7

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 16, 2019

He shortly followed with another image of Pelosi at the meeting, asking “Do you think they like me?”

Do you think they like me? pic.twitter.com/TDmUnJ8HtF

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 16, 2019

As Rep. Veronica Escobar wrote, “someone is definitely nervous and unhinged. But it’s not Speaker Pelosi.”

This photo could be a Pelosi campaign poster — the sole woman in the room, literally standing up to the President. Why he thinks this makes her look bad is a mystery. https://t.co/7iEuD4UUVO

— David Lauter (@DavidLauter) October 16, 2019

In classic Pelosi style, she quickly turned the tables on Trump; making the image her Twitter cover photo and conveying it as a banner of strength.

What we’ve come to learn about Speaker Pelosi this year is that she is not afraid to take a stand against Trump, having recently launched an official impeachment inquiry into his presidency. In January, she blocked him from delivering the State of the Union address in the House chamber until the government shutdown over the border wall was resolved.

When asked about what she was saying in the moment captured in the photo, Pelosi replied, “At that moment I was probably saying, ‘All roads lead to Putin.'”

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Interestingly, they have faced questions from powerful women and one particularly influential girl. There’s Greta Thunberg questioning the response of world leaders to climate change (with Morrison firmly in her signts), the president of Britain’s highest court, Lady Brenda Hale, declaring Johnson’s actions to avoid Parliament had been unlawful, and Speaker Nancy Pelosi pulling the trigger on an impeachment inquiry of Trump.

And all three of these world leaders have issued some extraordinary comments to defend their positions.

First up, there’s Morrison, who failed to show up to the special UN session on climate change earlier this week, despite him being in the United States. He was pictured marvelling at Mcdonalds ordering technology in Chicago, instead of joining the majority of his international counterparts in New York to discuss the very real threat of climate change to our collective futures.

As such, he missed Thunberg’s take-down on the inaction of world leaders at the event, where she accused political leaders of failing the younger generations.

Asked his response to Thunberg, Morrison declared that the climate change debate is causing “needless anxiety” among Australian children.

And Morrison’s overall response to criticism regarding Australia’s actions on climate change? To declare the country is not actually doing that bad given, among other things, the amount of tonnes of emissions Australia was expected to release by 2020 had actually dropped (it is projections that have fallen, not actual emissions and this has nothing to do with national policy).

He also pointed out that Australia is only responsible for 1.3 per cent of global emissions, so what’s the fuss all about? Well even that figure doesn’t look good when you consider we only have 0.3 per cent of the global population. Then there’s the issue that the figure doesn’t include fossil fuel exports.

Indeed, check out this excellent explainer from The Guardian noting the ‘facts’ versus the various stats Morrison shared this week, regarding our response to climate change.

Morrison also resorted to what appeared to be his own version of a Trump style ‘Fake news!’ defence (although he denied doing so). He told reporters that “completely false” information is being spread by the media and climate activists regarding Australia’s climate change response. “Oftentimes the criticisms that have been made about Australia are complete false,” he said. “Where do they get their information from? Who knows? Maybe they read it, maybe they read it.”

That’s Morrison, how about Johnson, who is feeling a completely different kind of pressure in his attempts to meet a Brexit deadline of October 31?

He had to leave the United States in a hurry when Lady Hale declared that the UK’s advice to the Queen to prorogue Parliament had been “unlawful, void and of no effect.”

Johnson then resorted to a number of dismal tactics in order to stay on the front foot, but his comments about the late Jo Cox were particularly terrible, and absolutely distressing for her friends and family and former parliamentary colleagues.

Johnson said that the best way to honour the remain-supporting MP who was murdered during the EU referendum campaign, would be to “get Brexit done.” As Cox’s husband told BBC Radio 4’s Today program following the comments: “I’m not sure that we can look the nation in the eye and say that was a good day.”

And finally, there’s President Donald Trump, who as you can only guess has been hot on the tweet button this week, after Nancy Pelosi declared he had “seriously violated the Constitution.”

The evidence against Trump, including the reconstructed trancript of him pushing to get the Ukranian president to “do us a favour”, does not look good — but whether or not attempts to impeach him at this stage are a good idea will be the subject of much debate over the coming days, weeks, months and years.

Still, Trump’s gone into an instant ‘Chernobyl-style meltdown’ as Vanity Fair described it, issuing a stream of ‘Fake News!” & “witch hunt!” tweets, Fox News quotes, abuse aimed at the whistle-blower in question — including comparing them to a “spy”, predictions that the stock markets will collapse if he’s impeached etc etc etc.

And that’s just in the last few hours, expect it to get messy. Very messy.

Which says a lot, in these current times.

As for Trump’s response to Thunberg, he resorted to mocking her.

She seems like a very happy young girl looking forward to a bright and wonderful future. So nice to see! https://t.co/1tQG6QcVKO

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 24, 2019

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