BATTLE CREEK, Mich. -- President Donald Trump rallied supporters in Michigan on Wednesday night as the House voted to impeach him, declaring, "It doesn't really feel like we're being impeached."
Trump took the stage minutes before he became the third president in U.S. history to be impeached by the House of Representatives.
The president emerged from a mock fireplace at the Christmas-themed rally as the impeachment effort proceeded. He took time to praise "the miracle of Christmas, the greatness of America and the glory of God," even as he slammed Democrats, accusing the "radical left in Congress" of being "consumed with envy and hate and rage."
Aides had said Trump would wait to see the House vote before walking out to address the rally, but he appeared onstage early and promised "the best speech you've ever heard" in a swing state that narrowly voted for him in 2016.
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"By the way, it doesn't really feel like we're being impeached," Trump said upon taking the stage. "The country is doing better than ever before. We did nothing wrong. We did nothing wrong, and we have tremendous support in the Republican Party like we've never had before."
Later, Trump exulted when he got the impeachment tallies: "We didn't lose one Republican vote." The crowd cheered.
Throughout the day, Trump tweeted his frustration and disbelief regarding the impeachment vote.
"Can you believe that I will be impeached today by the Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats, AND I DID NOTHING WRONG!" Trump wrote. He asked his followers to "Say a PRAYER!"
As members of the House debated the articles of impeachment, Trump tweeted: "Such atrocious lies by the radical left, do nothing democrats. This is an assault on America, and an assault on the Republican Party!!!!" he wrote in all capital letters.
The House considered two articles of impeachment. The first charges him with abuse of power over accusations that he pressured the president of Ukraine to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden while U.S. security aid was being withheld. The second charges him with obstruction of Congress, alleging that he stonewalled investigative efforts.
"Through their depraved actions today, crazy Nancy Pelosi's House Democrats have branded themselves with an eternal mark of shame," Trump said at the rally. "And it really is -- it's a disgrace, Democrats. Lawmakers do not believe you have the right to select your own president."
Early in his speech, before the House vote was in, Trump told the crowd, "They've been trying to impeach me since I won."
"The do-nothing Democrats -- and they are do-nothing -- all they want to do is focus on this," Trump said, adding that Democrats "are declaring their deep hatred and disdain for the American voter. This lawless partisan witch hunt is a political suicide march for the Democrat Party."
"They're the ones who should be impeached, every one of them," Trump said.
TRUMP'S MESSAGE
As the debate wore on, Trump aides, including White House counselor Kellyanne Conway, fanned out across Capitol Hill to bolster the president's message that impeachment is helping Republicans and damaging Democrats. Vice President Mike Pence got to Michigan ahead of Trump for a daylong bus tour before the Battle Creek rally.
Speaking before Trump at the rally, Pence labeled the impeachment drive "a disgrace" and told the crowd that Democrats were "trying to impeach this president because they know they can't defeat this president."
Pence said Pelosi and the Democrats were "having their say tonight, but the Republican Senate is going to have their say in January."
The president's middle son, Eric, told reporters during a campaign conference call that he and other Trump surrogates would be working to target Democrats in districts his father won in 2016.
"We're going to win this thing again. They are handing it to us," he said. "But this is very sad that they are putting the country through this."
Conway said recent polling and an influx of money suggest "this entire exercise has blown up in the Democrats' face."
Trump's campaign has experienced a surge in contributions and volunteers during the proceedings and was hoping to raise an additional $2 million Wednesday ahead of the votes.
Trump, via tweet, declared that Pelosi "will go down in history as worst Speaker."
Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California, the House minority leader, and Rep. John Ratcliffe, R-Texas, said they were part of a group of GOP lawmakers who met with Trump at the White House on Tuesday evening to talk strategy about Wednesday's House session and a Senate trial in January.
McCarthy insisted that Trump remains focused on moving forward with his agenda.
"Anybody else, this would be traumatic for them," McCarthy said. "I've never seen a man so strong. ... He is focused on what the American people need."
It was a message repeated by White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham, who insisted on Fox & Friends that the president has been a voice of calm for top administration officials.
"He is such a focused president," Grisham said. "I must tell you that while he's frustrated ... he is also so focused, and he is leading our White House and keeping us calm and telling us, 'That's OK, we're going to move forward, we're focused, this is going to take us through to 2020.'"
Information for this article was contributed by Aamer Madhani, Kevin Freking, Jonathan Lemire, Darlene Superville, Zeke Miller and Jill Colvin of The Associated Press; and by Eli Stokols of the Los Angeles Times.
A Section on 12/19/2019