Pelosi launches ‘official impeachment inquiry’ into Trump

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Tuesday that Democratic leaders are launching an “official impeachment inquiry” into President Trump.

“The actions taken to date by the president have seriously violated the Constitution, especially when the president says, ‘Article Two says I can do whatever I want,’ ” Pelosi said in a nationally televised address.

“I can say with authority the Trump administration’s actions undermine both our national security and our intelligence and the protections of the whistleblowers. The actions of the Trump presidency revealed dishonorable facts of the president’s betrayal of his oath of office, betrayal of national security and betrayal of the integrity of our elections.

“Therefore, today, I am announcing the House of Representatives is moving forward with an official impeachment inquiry,” the top Dem said. “The president must be held accountable. No one is above the law.’’

The Speaker’s move to support an impeachment probe was triggered by a phone call Trump allegedly made to the president of Ukraine recently asking him to investigate whether former Vice President and White House hopeful Joe Biden improperly pulled strings to help his son in the country — while holding promised US military aid over his head.

Earlier Tuesday, Pelosi met with senior Democratic leaders who have already convened separate investigations into Trump involving potential impeachment proceedings on other issues.

She told the Democratic pols that they should put together their best arguments for impeachment of Trump and send them to the House Judiciary Committee, the New York Times reported, citing sources. Such a report could trigger an official impeachment proceeding by the House.

But the president would still have to be officially charged with “high crimes and misdemeanors” by the House before any impeachment vote, the Times said. For him to be booted from office, the GOP-controlled Senate would have to vote him out.