Representative Steve Cohen introduced 26 articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump on 24 September, branding him the most impeachable leader in US history, in the largest number of impeachment articles filed against a sitting president.
A Record-Breaking Impeachment Filing
The resolution lists 26 separate charges, the largest number of impeachment articles filed against a sitting president. The total more than doubles the 11 articles the House adopted against Andrew Johnson in 1868, which had stood as the largest set to reach a Senate trial. Trump's two earlier impeachments carried two articles and one article.
Cohen, a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee, filed the measure on 24 September. He accused the president of abusing his power, violating his oath of office, corrupting the pardon power, and breaching the Constitution's emoluments clauses.
'Trump is clearly the most impeachable President our country has ever endured,' Cohen said in a statement. 'His continued presence in office is a danger to our democracy.'
What the 26 Articles Actually Allege
The filing sets out allegations involving conduct that affects daily American life. It cites the deployment of military forces against US cities, defiance of court orders in immigration enforcement, and the removal of inspectors general without notice to Congress. Together, the allegations span executive power, immigration policy, foreign military action, government spending, and the treatment of federal institutions.
Other articles target the birthright citizenship executive order, tariffs imposed under emergency powers, the move to dismantle the Department of Education, and the banishment of reporters from the White House over unfavourable coverage.
Further counts address alleged extrajudicial killings in international waters off Venezuela, the war on Iran without congressional approval, and alleged personal profit from the presidency. Other counts name alleged political prosecutions of Comey, James, and Schiff.
A Message Document, Not a Mechanism
For all its scale, the resolution faces a Republican-controlled House. Republicans control the House, and another Trump impeachment resolution was tabled 232-147 on 15 September. No committee hearing or vote on Cohen's resolution had been announced as of publication.
That gap between breadth and prospects is the point. Cohen said he hoped the 120th Congress would provide stronger oversight of the executive branch. The breadth of the filing also places Cohen's allegations in one document, rather than spreading them across separate impeachment resolutions.
'That the sycophantic Republican majority in Congress is derelict in its duty does not mean that I must abandon my responsibilities,' Cohen said. 'When historians write about this period, and our constituents ask who stood up to President Trump's lawlessness, this resolution is the answer.'
Cohen's Long Impeachment History
The Memphis Democrat has pursued Trump's removal since the first term. He introduced five articles of impeachment in November 2017, then voted to impeach the president in 2019 and again in 2021. Earlier this year, he signed on to 13 articles brought by Representative John Larson of Connecticut.
The latest resolution gives voters a single reference point for what one senior Judiciary member formally alleges, even if the vote never comes. For readers tracking enforcement raids, troop deployments, and press access, the document sets out, in one place, the specific conduct Cohen says crosses the constitutional line.
