Trump on cusp of impeachment

Washington - House of Representatives debates charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.

Billowing partisan divisions were on display as members of the House of Representatives on Wednesday engaged in a debate ahead of historic votes on two charges against President Donald Trump accusing him of abusing his power and obstructing Congress that would make him only the third US president to be impeached.

The Democratic-controlled House at midday approved a rule on a vote of 228-197 setting the parameters for six hours of debate on the two articles of impeachment - formal charges - arising from the Republican president's actions toward Ukraine, with time equally divided between the parties and no amendments.

Separate votes on the two charges are expected in the early evening. The votes are expected to fall almost entirely along party lines, with Democrats in favour and Republicans opposed.

In a series of speeches on the House floor, Democratic lawmakers depicted Trump as a threat to American democracy for inviting foreign meddling in a US election while Republicans defended the president and accused Democrats of seeking to topple him from power using an unfair and rigged process. - Reuters