Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi announced the investigation Tuesday after a closed meeting with Democratic lawmakers, saying Trump's actions appeared to have undermined national security and violated the U.S. Constitution.
"The President must be held accountable. No one is above the law, "Pelosi said. Pelosi has been reluctant to take impeachment measures for months.
Trump quickly retaliated on Twitter, calling the investigation "political persecution garbage".
Media reports said Trump called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on July 25 to press him to investigate Democratic presidential leader Biden and his son. These media reports changed Pelosi's attitude.
Although Trump admitted that he talked about Biden on the phone with Ukrainian President Zelenski in July, he avoided answering questions and accused Biden of improperly trying to prevent Ukraine from investigating a business linked to his son Hunter.
"Joe Biden and his son are corrupt," Trump told reporters Monday when he was asked about the controversy during a break in New York for the United Nations General Assembly. But he did not produce any evidence.
There is no evidence that Biden used his vice presidency to help his son, and he said over the weekend that he had never discussed the latter's business in Ukraine with his son.
Trump promised Tuesday to release a record of his calls. He also confirmed that he had blocked nearly $400 million in aid to Ukraine, but denied that he wanted to force Zelenski to launch a business investigation that would hit Biden.
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