'A disgrace to the nation'

Good evening, OnPolitics readers —

Before we get into what happened today in the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump and other politics news, we wanted to address the gun battle in Jersey City, New Jersey on Tuesday. Six people were killed – including three civilians, one police officer and both gunmen – in an incident that rattled nearby residents. The Paste BN News team will monitor the latest developments.

Articles of impeachment against Trump revealed

House Democrats unveiled two articles of impeachment against Trump on Tuesday: abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. Here's what the articles mean and what happens next:

Why is this happening?

Trump is accused of using the power of his office to pressure Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to announce the opening of an investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden and leveraging congressionally approved military aid to do so. 

What do the articles mean?

• The abuse of power allegation stems from Trump's decision to withhold roughly $400 million of military aid from Ukraine until the country announced an investigation into Biden.
• The obstruction of Congress article is based on Trump’s lack of cooperation with the impeachment inquiry, including defying subpoenas for documents and testimony.

How did Trump respond?

Trump lashed out at the latest phase of what he called a "WITCH HUNT!" on Twitter shortly after the articles were announced. Trump and his aides claimed he would be vindicated in a Senate trial.

What’s next? 

The House Judiciary Committee will vote later this week on whether to recommend the articles to the full House. If approved, the House would then vote on whether to impeach Trump as early as next week. If approved, the Senate would hold a trial, and it would take a two-thirds majority to remove Trump from office.

• Read the full text of the articles of impeachment against Trump
• Pathway of the impeachment process: How it works, where we are

More impeachment news and analysis

• Richard Wolf discusses the "Obstruction of Congress" article and says this dispute is easy to understand: Democrats say Trump must comply with congressional subpoenas. Trump says the impeachment investigation violates his constitutional rights. Most legal scholars and impeachment experts say Congress has the upper hand in this fight.
• Using the term "Washington whiplash," Susan Page noted, "The head-spinning day reflected the accelerating news cycle that has marked the Era of Trump, a constant collision of developments, some of them jaw-dropping."
• This fact check challenges statements from Republicans and a Democrat who participated in Monday's House Judiciary Committee.

Trump, Barr slam FBI's Russia collusion probe, disputes new IG report

Attorney General William Barr said in interviews Tuesday that the FBI's reasoning for investigating potential collusion between Russia and Trump's campaign was "flimsy," and suggested it was possibly carried out in "bad faith."

His comments come a day after the release of a Department of Justice inspector general report that found the Russia probe was flawed, but that there was no evidence of political bias behind it and its basis was justified.

The report details dysfunction and missteps in the wiretap of former Trump aide Carter Page, and Trump chose to focus on the errors in comments he made Monday. 

Trump took it a step further Tuesday morning when he appeared to threaten FBI Director Christopher Wray in a tweet for drawing different conclusions. 

Trump's very busy day

Trump met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Tuesday. The last time Trump and Lavrov met, he faced questions about his 2016 campaign's ties to Moscow and a political furor over his decision to fire FBI Director James Comey.

The meeting came shortly after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo clashed publicly with Lavrov over several issues, including nuclear arms control, the war in Ukraine and Moscow's interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

After meeting with Lavrov, Trump visited Hershey, Pennsylvania for a rally Tuesday night in an important swing state ahead of the 2020 election.

Many supporters lined up hours before the rally and several called the recent political moves from House Democrats "a sham," "a joke" and "a disgrace to the nation." 

Wrapping it up

Let's take a swift look at some other news in the areas of policy and policymakers.

• Trump paid a total of $2 million to charity as part of an agreement to end a lawsuit accusing him and his family of illegally mismanaging his charitable foundation. New York Attorney General Letitia James announced Tuesday that Trump made good on the payment to eight different charities.
• House Democrats and Trump struck an agreement to revise a new trade deal with Mexico and Canada, delivering a win for the president on a top legislative priority.
• The inspector general's report revealed Christopher Steele – the former British spy whose controversial reports alleged links between the Trump campaign and Russian operatives – was friends with a member of the Trump family that multiple media reports have identified as Ivanka Trump. 
• Biden is holding his frontrunner status in the 2020 Democratic primary, while former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg jumped into the top five in two new polls Tuesday.

— Until Wednesday, OnPolitics readers