(USA TODAY) - The site is run by two civil rights groups — Free Speech for People, a non-partisan and non-profit organization, and RootsAction, an online interactive. Since its launch, the petition has received more than 100,000 signatures.
“Sign here to impeach Donald Trump now,” the homepage of the site says. “From the moment he assumed the office, President Donald Trump has been in direct violation of the US Constitution. The President is not above the law. We will not allow President Trump to profit from the presidency at the expense of our democracy.”
“We are calling upon Congress to pass a resolution calling for the House Committee on the Judiciary to investigate whether sufficient grounds exist for the impeachment of Donald John Trump, President of the United States,” said Free Speech for People and RootsAction on the website.
The “Impeach Trump Now” campaign describes what the nation is witnessing with Trump to be worse than Nixon and the Watergate scandal, in which former President Richard Nixon was found tampering with the election. (Nixon resigned before he could be impeached.) They claim that President Trump’s personal and business holdings in the United States and abroad are unprecedented conflicts of interest and therefore are grounds for impeachment.
On Twitter, a few trending hashtags include #ImpeachTrump, #ImpeachmentSoon and #ImpeachNow.
Good question. #Trump #POTUS #ImpeachmentSoon pic.twitter.com/GdKwcw7377
— Michael Leary (@Michael_Leary) January 22, 2017
trump has done the impossible. Unified the liberals. thanks, idiot. #illigitimatepresident #notmypresident #ImpeachNow #impeachtrump pic.twitter.com/mtFdzjXrCT
— Karen V. Wasylowski (@KarenWasylowski) January 22, 2017
I surely hope so #2017 #ImpeachTrump #ImpeachmentSoon #ImpeachNow https://t.co/3IRvl2ywaB
— Johnae Bell (@jomgriffin) January 23, 2017
Out of 45 presidents of the United States, only two have ever been impeached, Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton.
Andrew Johnson, 17th President of the United States, was formally impeached by the House of Representatives on Feb. 24, 1868. With a vote of 126 to 47, Johnson was charged with violation of the Tenure of Office Act. Ultimately, the Senate voted to acquit him by a margin of 35 guilty to 19 not guilty, one vote short of the necessary two-thirds needed for conviction.
Bill Clinton, 42nd President of the United States, was charged with lying under oath to a federal grand jury and obstructing justice. On Dec. 19, 1998 the House of Representatives impeached Clinton, over one hundred years since the last impeachment of a President the second time in history this ever occurred.
The trial began in Jan. of 1999 and resulted in Clinton being acquitted on both articles of impeachment. From this trial, came the infamous Clinton quote, “I did not have sexual relations with that woman.”
Whether or not this campaign will be successful in making President Trump the third President of the United States to be impeached is unclear.
The campaign urges citizens to take action. “Congress has the responsibility and authority to impeach the President when, as here, he has violated the Constitution and federal law. But it is up to every American – every one – to ensure that Members of Congress do their job,” said the campaign.
The campaign says they will deliver millions of signatures to Congress to convince members to introduce articles of impeachment.
Brianna Stone is a student at the University of Texas at Austin and a USA TODAY College digital producer.
