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President Donald Trump was acquitted by the Senate in the conclusion of the impeachment trial Wednesday, Feb. 5.
An acquittal was the expected result of the trial, as a conviction and removal from office would require a two-thirds majority. With the majority in the Senate being held by Republicans, an outcome in favor of conviction was considered very unlikely.
Neither of the two articles of impeachment — abuse of power and obstruction of Congress — had a simple majority of the votes, and the votes were almost entirely split along party lines. Senator Mitt Romney (R-Utah) was the only person to break party lines, voting to convict Trump on the first article of impeachment, abuse of power.
Following Trump’s acquittal, Trump retaliated against government officials who had testified against him during the impeachment proceedings, according to the Associated Press (AP). White House National Security Council (NSC) member Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman and his twin brother and ethics lawyer at the NSC Lt. Col. Yevgeny Vindman were both removed from their positions and reassigned to the Army. A. Vindman had testified against Trump to the House of Representatives during the impeachment investigation.
Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland was another witness in the impeachment inquiry that was removed from his position following Trump’s acquittal.
Trump has been heavily criticized by Democrats for punishing those who spoke against him in the proceedings.
“[This is] a clear and brazen act of retaliation that showcases the President’s fear of the truth,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said in a statement. “The President’s vindictiveness is precisely what led Republican Senators to be accomplices to his cover-up.”
Although many Republicans did not respond to the removal of the Vindman twins and Sondland, some of Trump’s supporters celebrated the removals, according to AP.
“[Vindman] should not be inside the National Security Council any longer. It’s not about retaliation. It’s because he cannot be trusted, he disagrees with the President’s policies, & his term there is coming to an end regardless,” Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) said in a tweet.
