Impeachment: what happened, what's next

MoveOn members' actions helped lead to the impeachment of Donald Trump. And our work will be critical for what comes next. [Images of "Impeach and Remove" actions from around the country]( Dear MoveOn member,  On Wednesday, December 18, the United States House of Representatives impeached Donald Trump.  This is a critical milestone in the fight to hold Trump accountable, protect our democracy, and demonstrate that nobody is above the law. This heroic achievement is a testament to the strength of grassroots action of a people-powered movement, including millions of MoveOn members. Thank you for all you've done to stand up for our democracy—and we invite you to join us for the next steps because we're not finished.  What's next? A fight in the Senate to hold Trump accountable for his corrupt and self-serving attacks on our elections, national security, and the Constitution—and to demand that Republicans choose their country over their loyalty to Trump. And it's a moment that needs all of us.  Can you join us for a national organizing call on Sunday, January 5? We'll hear from leading strategists who will lay out what to expect in the Senate phase of the process, our strategy, and how you can make an impact.  [Click here to RSVP for the national call at 8 p.m. ET (7 CT/6 MT/5 PT) on Sunday, January 5.](  It was not an easy path to this critical moment. Though MoveOn members called for Trump's impeachment in June 2017 and have campaigned tirelessly to build support for the case to hold him accountable and declare that nobody is above the law ever since, many Democrats were too timid to discuss impeachment as recently as a few months ago—and Republicans continue to actively defend and enable Trump to this day. A few short months ago, many were crowing that "the impeachment dream is dead."1  But thanks in part to efforts of MoveOn members, we moved the Democratic caucus, moved the national discourse, and turned impeachment from "dead" to done!  On the eve of the impeachment vote we came together with allies at 600+ volunteer-led events in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., to demand that Congress impeach and remove Donald Trump.  And in the months leading up to last week, MoveOn members: - Made more than 100,000 calls to House and Senate offices to demand that Congress hold Trump accountable. - Powered billboards, TV ads, and videos seen millions of times, making the case for impeachment and calling out the Republicans who chose party over country. - Joined and led actions through the spring, summer, and fall outside congressional offices to build the drumbeat for this moment. - Participated in a record-setting petition delivery of 10 million signatures calling for impeachment. We're not finished yet. We have organizers in Maine, Arizona, Colorado, and Kentucky working with MoveOn members, local allies, and other voters to keep up constituent pressure on senators and generate local news coverage. And we're launching mobile billboards in critical states in the new year to continue to drive the narrative. We'll continue bird-dogging senators on Capitol Hill when they return from recess. And there are more plans in the works.  The fight in the Senate is unpredictable. This is only the third time in history the Senate has taken up an impeachment trial.We know that Mitch McConnell is actively coordinating with the White House to deny the American people a fair impeachment trial and rig the outcome to ensure that Trump remains above the law. We know that Republicans seem more afraid of Trump's wrath than they are concerned about defending our Constitution and protecting the integrity of our upcoming elections.  The unlikely arc to making impeachment a reality shows us that we cannot afford to let conventional wisdom stop us from doing what we know is right. There is so much more that could be revealed about Trump's crimes and corruption. There are Republicans around the country who are fed up with his abuses of power. And we know that we have people power on our side—that all of us together are able to accomplish so much to defend our democracy and stand up to the abuses of this administration.   So join us on January 5 to be part of the strategy conversation about what comes next. [Just click here to RSVP for the national call.](  Thanks for all you do. —Rahna, Justin, David, Anne, and the rest of the team Source:  1. "Ex-federal prosecutor: 'Impeachment dream is dead,'" The Hill, July 25, 2019 [ Want to support our work? The MoveOn community will work every moment, day by day and year by year, to resist Trump's agenda, contain the damage, defeat hate with love, and begin the process of swinging the nation's pendulum back toward sanity, decency, and the kind of future that we must never give up on. And to do it we need your support, now more than ever. Will you stand with MoveOn? [Click here to chip in $3, or whatever you can afford.]( Contributions to MoveOn Civic Action are not tax-deductible for income tax purposes. This email was sent to {NAME} on December 23, 2019. To change your email address or update your contact info, [click here](. If you'd like to receive less frequent emails from MoveOn, you can [click here](. If you'd like to receive no more than one email per week, you can [click here](. To remove yourself from this list, [click here](.