WASHINGTON, Dec 21 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The top Democrat in the US Congress, Nancy Pelosi, has written to President Donald Trump inviting him to give his State of the Union speech on Feb 4 amid the partisan impeachment battle.
The annual speech would come during or soon after his trial in the Senate, where he is likely to be acquitted.
He was formally impeached by the House of Representatives on Wednesday.
House Speaker Pelosi said Trump would be “impeached forever, no matter what the Senate does”.
The impeachment vote two days ago in the Democrat-led House of Representatives split almost totally along party lines.
Democrats and Republicans have yet to agree on when the upcoming Senate trial will take place.
The letter sent by Pelosi on Friday begins with a pointed reminder to Trump of the “separation of powers” enshrined in the US Constitution.
The three branches – the judicial, executive, and legislative – she said are “co-equal branches acting as checks on each other”.
“In the spirit of respecting our Constitution, I invite you to deliver your State of the Union Address,” she wrote, adding: “Thank you for your attention to this matter”.
White House spokesman Hogan Gidley said that Trump had accepted the invitation to speak. — NNN-AGENCIES