Pelosi announces House will draft articles of impeachment

Update 1:10 p.m. EST Dec. 5: White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham accused House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of ignoring the "needs of the American people and (advancing) her selfish political desires" after the California politician announced the House would move forward with articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump.

“Democrats in Congress have clearly abused their power,” Grisham said. "Democrats in Congress have lied to the American people. Democrats in Congress have made a mockery of the law."

Grisham’s accusations are similar to ones lobbed at Trump by Pelosi earlier Thursday.

“The president abused his power for his own personal political benefit at the expense of our national security," she said. “The president’s actions are a profound violations of the public’s trust. ... The president’s actions have seriously violated the Constitution -- especially when he says and acts upon the belief Article 2 says I can do whatever I want. No.”

Update 12 p.m. EST Dec. 5: President Donald Trump slammed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday after she announced the House will move forward with articles of impeachment against him.

“Nancy Pelosi just had a nervous fit,” Trump said. “She hates that we will soon have 182 great new judges and sooo much more.”

Pelosi told reporters Thursday that the president’s actions since being sworn into office left Democrats with “no choice but to act.”

Pelosi previously declined to pursue articles of impeachment against Trump, but she said Thursday that the surfacing of a whistleblower complaint filed against Trump over the summer changed her mind.

The whistleblower in August filed a complaint about concerns over Trump’s attempts to get Ukrainian officials to investigate one of his political rivals, former vice president and 2020 presidential hopeful Joe Biden.

Update 11:45 a.m. Dec. 5: House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is speaking with reporters after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Thursday that the House will move forward with articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump.

Update 11 a.m. EST Dec. 5: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is speaking with reporters after announcing earlier Thursday that the House plans to move forward with articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump.

Counsels for Republicans and Democrats will present impeachment evidence Monday at a 9 a.m. hearing, according to Politico and Axios.

The Judiciary Committee will also hold a hearing to mark up the articles of impeachment, according to Axios.

Update 9:50 a.m. EST Dec. 5: Officials with President Donald Trump's 2020 re-election campaign slammed the decision announced Thursday morning by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to draft articles of impeachment against Trump.

“The facts are uncontested,” Pelosi said at a news conference Thursday morning. “The president abused his power for his own personal political benefit at the expense of our national security.”

Marc Lotter, director of strategic communications for Trump’s 2020 campaign, said in a tweet that Democrats decided to impeach the president “over ‘feels’ not ‘facts.'”

Campaign manager Brad Parscale accused Democrats of trying to “take the decision of who should be president out of the hands of voters.”

“Impeaching the President has always been their goal, so they should just get on with it so we can have a fair trial in the Senate and expose The Swap for what it is,” he said. “Speaker Pelosi, Chairman (Adam) Schiff, and Hunter Biden should testify, and then we can get back to the business of our country.”

Democrats have been building a case for impeachment against Trump based on his decision to ask Ukraine to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden, one of several Democrats vying for the 2020 presidential nomination. Trump has denied any wrongdoing.

Update 9:30 a.m. EST Dec. 5: White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Democrats "should be ashamed" after the California politician announced plans to move forward with articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump.

“(Trump) has done nothing but lead our country - resulting in a booming economy, more jobs & a stronger military, to name just a few of his major accomplishments,” Grisham wrote Thursday morning in a tweet. “We look forward to a fair trial in the Senate.”

Pelosi said Thursday morning that Trump’s decision to ask Ukraine for an investigation into his political rival, former Vice President Joe Biden, were “a profound violation of public’s trust.”

“The president abused his power for his own personal political benefit at the expense of national security by withholding military aid and crucial Oval Office meeting in exchange for an announcement of an investigation into his political rival,” she said.

Update 9:20 a.m. EST Dec. 5: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Thursday morning that the House will move forward to draft articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump.

“The facts are uncontested,” she said at a news conference Thursday morning. “The president abused his power for his own personal political benefit at the expense of our national security.”

The announcement came one day after House Democrats held a closed-door meeting on impeachment, according to Cox Media Group’s Jamie Dupree. The House Judiciary Committee also held its first hearing Wednesday on impeachment.

“Our democracy is what is at stake,” Pelosi said Thursday. “The president leaves us no choice but to act.”

The historic announcement came as Democrats push toward a vote, possibly by Christmas.

Original report: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will give an update Thursday morning on the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump.

The California Democrat plans to make the announcement from the Speaker’s Balcony Hallway at 9 a.m. EST.

On Wednesday, the impeachment inquiry moved to the House Judiciary Committee as three of four law professors considered experts in impeachment from across the country testified they believe Trump’s action toward Ukraine constitutes bribery.

The three professors – Pamela Karlan, Noah Feldman and Michael Gerhardt – were called by the Democrats. The fourth professor testifying Wednesday, Jonathan Turley, called by Republicans, did not agree.

House Democrats launched the inquiry in September to investigate whether Trump abused his power by pressuring Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to announce investigations into former Vice President Joe Biden and Biden’s son, Hunter, and their connection to a Ukrainian energy company in exchange for an invitation to the White House and a military aid package.

Read more here or here.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.