- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday evening responded to a letter President Donald Trump sent her ahead of a House vote that will likely see him impeached.
- In his six-page letter to Pelosi, Trump called the impeachment process an "abuse of power by Democrat lawmakers," and said Pelosi had "cheapened the importance" of the political process.
- Pelosi told reporters on Tuesday night that she hadn't "fully read" the letter but that it was "ridiculous."
- "I don't have a reaction," she said. "I've seen the essence of it. It's really sick."
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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday evening responded to a letter President Donald Trump sent her on the House vote that will likely see him impeached, calling the letter "really sick."
The House Judiciary Committee approved articles of impeachment last week, charging President Donald Trump with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress over his dealings with Ukraine. The House will vote on the articles, if approved the process moves to the Senate for trial.
In his six-page letter to House Speaker Pelosi, Trump called the impeachment process an "abuse of power by Democrat lawmakers," and said Pelosi had "cheapened the importance" of the political process.
"By proceeding with your invalid impeachment, you are violating your oaths of office, you are breaking your allegiance to the Constitution, and you are declaring open war on American Democracy," Trump wrote.
"More due process was afforded to those accused in the Salem Witch Trials," he added.
Pelosi told reporters on Tuesday night that she hadn't "fully read" the letter but that it was "ridiculous."
"I don't have a reaction. It's ridiculous," she told CNN's senior congressional correspondent Manu Raju. "I mean, I haven't fully read it. We've been working. I've seen the essence of it. It's really sick."
Senior White House officials told Washington Post White House Reporter Josh Dawsey that White House lawyers were not consulted when Trump wrote the letter and "were not pleased" with the release of the letter a day before an impeachment.
According to ABC News' chief White House correspondent Jonathan Karl, the letter was drafted by legislative affairs director Eric Ueland, presidential adviser Stephen Miller, and counselor to chief of staff Michael Williams. White House counsel Pat Cipollone "saw it after it was drafted."
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