A Tennessee Democrat has lodged 26 articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump, a sweeping package he admits will go nowhere in the Republican-controlled House.
Rep. Steve Cohen introduced the resolution on September 24, nine days after the House shelved a narrower impeachment push from another Democrat. Newsweek reported the filing as a solo effort from a senior House Judiciary Committee member who has tried this play before.
Cohen’s move does not impeach the president. An individual member can introduce articles. Impeachment happens only if the House votes to approve at least one of them. Republicans control the chamber, and Cohen himself said the effort is unlikely to advance.
The timing tells the story. On September 15 the House tabled Rep. Al Green’s separate impeachment resolution by a 232-147 vote. Eighteen Democrats joined nearly all Republicans to kill it. Another 47 lawmakers voted present, including House Democratic leaders Hakeem Jeffries, Katherine Clark, and Pete Aguilar.
Cohen did not hide the politics. In a press release he framed the president as an ongoing threat and cast Republicans as failing their duty.
Cohen said in that release:
"Trump is clearly the most impeachable President our country has ever endured. His continued presence in office is a danger to our democracy,"
He went further:
"That the sycophantic Republican majority in Congress is derelict in its duty does not mean that I must abandon my responsibilities. I took an independent oath to support and defend the Constitution. That commitment compels me to introduce this resolution today. When historians write about this period, and our constituents ask who stood up to President Trump’s lawlessness, this resolution is the answer."
Speaking later to Nexstar, Cohen conceded the obvious end point.
Cohen told Nexstar:
"I know they won't go anywhere, but I'm not going to stop standing up for my constituents and for democracy,"
That is the posture: a resolution designed for the record, not for a realistic floor path.
Green’s September effort focused on the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. It accused the president of abusing power in operations where federal officers killed several civilians. The administration defended those officers, saying they feared for their lives and acted in self-defense.
Democratic leaders refused to endorse Green’s resolution. They said impeachment should follow formal investigations and hearings that had not taken place. Shortly before the vote, Aguilar said impeachment was not at the top of House Democrats’ agenda.
Jeffries, Clark, and Aguilar then voted present rather than yes or no. The chamber tabled the measure anyway. Cohen filed his much longer list nine days later.
Newsweek’s account makes clear the claims are Cohen’s allegations. They do not establish that Trump committed impeachable offenses.
The resolution ranges across immigration policy, military power, federal spending, tariffs, presidential pardons, the federal workforce, universities, law firms, the media, and alleged personal financial benefit from the office.
The first article accuses Trump of “undermining democracy” by sowing doubt in elections. A second alleges abuse of power by waging war on Iran without congressional approval. Another cites alleged extrajudicial killings in international waters off Venezuela. A fourth targets the deployment of military forces against U.S. cities.
Immigration features heavily. Articles attack Trump’s birthright citizenship executive order and the administration’s use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia to El Salvador. They also make claims about conditions at El Salvador’s CECOT prison and accuse the administration of defying court orders in immigration enforcement.
Other counts accuse the president of unlawfully withholding congressionally appropriated funds, imposing loyalty tests on the federal workforce, improperly terminating inspectors general, and abusing pardon powers.
Two articles accuse him of attacking press freedom, including by excluding reporters from the White House over coverage and allegedly coercing CBS and ABC to alter editorial content. Separate articles target executive actions against law firms and the withholding of federal funds from universities.
The final article alleges Trump violated the Constitution’s emoluments provisions by “profiting personally and directly from the presidency.”
A related fight over White House press access is already in court. CNN, MS NOW, and Politico are suing after their reporters were banished, seeking to regain entry. The White House was contacted for comment on Cohen’s filing; no response appears in the reporting.
Cohen introduced five articles against Trump in November 2017, when he was ranking member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice. Green also pushed impeachment that year, arguing Trump’s conduct had fueled bigotry and hatred and brought the presidency into disrepute. In December 2017 Green forced a House vote; lawmakers tabled it 364-58.
Trump was later impeached twice by the House during his first presidency and acquitted by the Senate both times. On December 18, 2019, the House approved articles on abuse of power and obstruction of Congress tied to a Ukraine-centered investigation. The Senate acquitted him in February 2020. In January 2021 the House impeached him again on a charge of incitement of insurrection after the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. The Senate acquitted him once more.
Cohen’s latest filing adds volume, not a new governing majority. House Democrats remain divided over whether to pursue impeachment at all. Leaders sat out Green’s vote. Cohen pressed ahead with a laundry list he already describes as going nowhere.
Voters sent Trump back to the White House. A single member’s resolution does not reverse that choice, and a Republican House is not going to rubber-stamp a 26-count grievance file dressed up as constitutional duty.
