2nd Trump Impeachment Vote: How Rep. Donald Norcross Voted

NEW JERSEY — U.S. Representative Donald Norcross voted to impeach President Donald Trump on a charge that he incited the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol last week. The House voted 232-197 in favor, making Trump the first president in U.S. history to be impeached twice.

The historic House vote took place a week after a mob of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol in a siege that resulted in five deaths — including the beating death of a Capitol Police officer, multiple arrests and a sprawling FBI investigation. The impeachment comes a week before President-elect Joe Biden is to be inaugurated in a city on high alert amid ongoing threats of violence.

“Following the shameful and deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol — the physical embodiment of our democracy — I have upheld my oath to protect and defend the Constitution by voting in favor of the impeachment of President Trump," Norcross said in a release following the vote. “On January 6, 2021, the President of the United States incited an insurrection to deter Members of Congress from finishing our work to certify the outcome of the presidential election and ensure the peaceful transfer of power. Five people died, including a law enforcement officer who gave his life defending our lives and our democracy. The President is a clear and present danger to our democracy and to the American people, and whether he has 4 years or 4 days left in office, he will be held accountable.”

Norcross spoke on the House Floor before the vote. The video can be seen below.

What's Next: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky will not allow the Senate to vote to convict Trump — which would have been an extraordinary turn by a Republican leader who has defended and protected Trump during the four years of his tumultuous presidency.

• If an impeachment trial is allowed in the Senate, it will be after Biden is inaugurated, McConnell said Wednesday. McConnell has reportedly said he believes Trump committed impeachable offenses, and that moving forward with a vote would make it easier for Republicans to purge Trumpism from their party, but he on’t

• Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, the third-ranking member of the House Republican leadership, is among more than two dozen Republicans who signaled they would break from their party and vote to impeach Trump.

• "There has never been a greater betrayal by a President of the United States of his office and his oath to the Constitution," she said in a statement Tuesday.

Trial In The Senate: Two-thirds of the chamber would have to vote to convict Trump. The Senate exonerated Trump last year on charges of abuse of power and contempt of Congress after special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation, but the charge against Trump this time is more clear-cut.

Under the Constitution, the Senate could prevent him from holding federal office again and strip him of other perks afforded to former presidents.

As lawmakers debated the need for and grave potential consequence of impeaching Trump for a second time, the FBI warned of armed protests in the days ahead of Biden’s inauguration. Statehouses in all 50 states have been targeted for protests. Read more here: NJ Preparing After FBI Issues Warning In Wake Of Pro-Trump Riots

The agency is also monitoring chatter on an encrypted messaging platform about plans by Trump extremists to form perimeters around the Capitol, the White House and the Supreme Court building as Biden takes the oath of office.

On Wednesday, Trenton Mayor W. Reed Gusciora said that his police department is working with the State Police, the Mercer County Sheriff's Department and the Mercer County Prosecutor's Office "as part of a coordinated plan to ensure our safety if any protesters stray beyond the First Amendment right to peaceful protest."

"Color us in the category of preparing for the worst and hoping for the best and erring in the side of overpreparing," Gov. Phil Murphy said during his Wednesday news conference.

Col. Patrick J. Callahan, the superintendent of the State Police, said New Jersey and federal partners are "monitoring what we're hearing with regard to protests around the country and certainly in New Jersey." Read more here: State, Local Police Brace For Possible Violence At NJ Capitol

Norcross also voted in favor of that resolution, on Tuesday. Read more here: 25th Amendment Resolution: How Rep. Donald Norcross Voted

Last year, Norcross was one of 10 members of the New Jersey delegation to vote in favor of impeaching Trump, and charge him with abusing his office and obstructing Congress.

As early as May 2019, he said Trump needs to be held accountable for stonewalling Congressional investigations into possible collusion with Russia during the 2016 elections.

Last week, after the riots, he said Trump should "resign in disgrace." Norcross represents parts of Camden, Burlington and Gloucester counties.