The Democrat-led House of Representatives is in the thick of impeachment proceedings against President Trump — a process that will unfold in two phases.
Testimony from a number of witnesses is scheduled for this week and beyond before the House Intelligence Committee.
Afterward, the process gets turned over to the House Judiciary Committee to draft one or more articles of impeachment and vote on them.
A simple majority — 21 votes — is needed by the Judiciary Committee, currently comprised of 24 Democrats and 17 Republicans, on each of the articles in order for them to proceed to a vote by the full House.
At least one article of impeachment needs to be approved for an impeachment trial to begin in the Republican-controlled Senate, which would need a two-thirds majority of its 100 members to convict the president.
If found guilty, Trump would be removed from office — and Vice President Mike Pence would become president.
Two presidents in US history have been impeached, Andrew Johnson in 1868 and Bill Clinton in 1998. Richard Nixon resigned in 1974 before the full House could vote. Johnson and Clinton were each acquitted by the Senate.
