TEHRAN (Iran News) Mohajerani opened the weekly briefing by extending Ramadan greetings, noting, “Ramadan is a month to become more humane, distancing ourselves from anger, envy, resentment, and prejudice with the aid of its spiritual moments. I hope we can embody the noble verse, ‘We have honored the children of Adam,’ through the sanctity of the Nights of Power.”

Addressing the recent impeachment of the Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance, she remarked, “No government welcomes losing a cabinet member, but the parliament has the right to exercise its oversight role, and no one holds a grudge over this. However, we must recognize that 40-odd years of accumulated issues cannot be resolved in six months—nor were they created in that time. We hope this parliamentary action brings stability, though yesterday’s stock market index suggested otherwise.” She reiterated that the government views unity as a strategy aimed at solving the people’s and the country’s problems, not merely as a superficial gesture.

“Unity is pursued with faith in the 14th government,” Mohajerani stressed. “It’s the only approach that can address the people’s challenges. We face a backlog of issues, evident in the scale of imbalances we’re tackling. Impeachment and resignations won’t sway us from unity or our mission to improve society, the economy, and people’s lives.”

She also highlighted the government’s focus on the Youth Population Plan, noting that while the budget allocated 19 trillion tomans for related loans, the Central Bank reported disbursing 24.6 trillion tomans, reflecting the administration’s commitment.

On healthcare, Mohajerani said, “Health costs are tied to economic and social conditions, which are interconnected. The government is working to minimize the adverse effects of pharmaceutical sanctions on public health.” She acknowledged that while much of Iran’s medicine is produced domestically, the country is not entirely self-sufficient, and intensified sanctions significantly increase costs. “Through insurance coverage, optimized drug consumption, and a referral system, we aim to mitigate these challenges,” she added, noting Iran’s higher-than-average drug consumption compared to many nations.

Responding to a journalist’s question about a message for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Mohajerani said, “Security is inherent and not a commodity to be bought. It must be fostered in people’s hearts to support governance. Don’t gamble your country’s assets as a president, and beware of losing them in that gamble.”

On domestic policy, Mohajerani addressed plans to review subsidies for high-income groups, stating, “Budget Law 1404 mandates the elimination of cash subsidies for the top three income deciles (8, 9, and 10), ensuring aid reaches those truly in need.”

She also discussed spring exhibitions aimed at cutting out middlemen and offering products at 5-30% discounts, alongside continuing the distribution of commodity vouchers for lower-income deciles in two phases. Regarding the Minister of Communications’ recent trip to Serbia, she emphasized Iran’s balanced foreign policy, leveraging global capacities, including Europe, for technological and economic collaboration.

Mohajerani reassured the public that basic goods warehouses are fully stocked, with governors tasked as provincial market regulation heads to address local needs. She explained the Program and Budget Organization’s silence on next year’s budget changes amid the impeachment, stating, “Disrupting public calm and markets benefits no one. Efforts are underway to maintain stability, with essential goods still subsidized at the 28,500-toman currency rate.”

On negotiations, she clarified, “We don’t say ‘no talks under sanctions,’ but rather ‘no talks under maximum pressure.’ Negotiation is voluntary, not forced, and must be a dialogue toward a shared goal. We won’t negotiate under maximum pressure, but we’re open to respectful talks.”

Commenting on Gaza and U.S. President Trump’s alleged relocation plan, she said, “Gaza is an inseparable part of Palestine, the cradle of divine religions. This policy is a continuation of genocide against its people—an unforgivable crime. We stand with Palestinians and hope this ends soon.”

On Iran’s Hirmand water rights, she noted that the Foreign Minister’s Kabul visit secured water flow, not just due to rainfall, with hopes for its continuation.

Addressing energy and water imbalances, Mohajerani outlined 14 mega-projects, including boosting power plant capacity and targeting 30,000 megawatts of renewable energy over four years—exceeding the 7th Development Plan’s 12,000-megawatt goal. In education, she highlighted President’s focus, with 18 meetings held to enhance pre-school access, teaching quality, and reduce dropout rates.

With Ramadan and Nowruz approaching, tourism services will extend until April 13, supported by 1.2 million personnel. Mohajerani endorsed the “No to Accidents” campaign, urging safer driving given Iran’s high crash fatality rates. “Impeachment ”

She affirmed the government’s commitment to mother-tongue education under Article 15 of the Constitution, with a comprehensive bill in progress to preserve Iran’s linguistic heritage—potentially spanning 400 to 1,400 dialects—while addressing bilingual students’ educational challenges.

Mohajerani hailed Mohammad Javad Zarif, who resigned as strategic deputy to the president, as a “system asset,” expressing hope for legal reforms to retain such talents. She concluded by assuring citizens that the government is tackling year-end banking limits and market stability, with details forthcoming from relevant authorities.

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Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the Democratic leader, lashed out at Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, his Republican counterpart, on Sunday night in a news conference, accusing him of planning to conduct an abbreviated, unfair trial.

“Whether it’s because McConnell knows the trial is a cover-up and wants to whip through it as quickly as possible, or because he’s afraid to even more evidence will come out, he’s trying to rush it through,” Schumer said. “That is wrong. And it is so wrong that no one even knows what his plan is a day and a half before one of the most momentous decisions any senator will ever make.”

McConnell has so far refused to reveal details about the resolution he will seek to pass on Tuesday setting up the rules of the trial. But Senator David Perdue, Republican of Georgia, said on Sunday that McConnell was considering a plan that would give each side 24 hours to present arguments on the floor of the Senate, but with the requirement that they do so over the course of two days.

“Twenty-four hours of presentation by the House managers over two days, then 24 hours of presentation by the president’s team over two days and then 16 hours of questions submitted by the members in writing to the chief justice,” Perdue said on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” adding, “That’s our proposal.”

Democrats reacted with alarm to that idea on Sunday. One aide working on the impeachment trial noted that it was scheduled to start each day at 1 p.m. and said that forcing the House managers to deliver 12 hours of arguments in a single day could push the trial into the early hours of the next morning when few people would be watching.

In his news conference, Schumer said the president and his Republican allies were eager for a short trial because they did not want the president’s actions to be put on display for everyone to see.

“He’s afraid of what the American people might hear,” Schumer said of McConnell, The New York Times reported.

The House managers, who will serve as prosecutors in the trial, met for several hours on Sunday to strategize and refine their presentations, according to congressional aides working on the trial. Representative Jerrold Nadler of New York, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and one of the managers, said Sunday that the Senate must seek testimony from additional witnesses.

“It’s not negotiable whether you have witnesses,” he said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” “And this whole controversy about whether there should be witnesses is really a question of, does the Senate want to have a fair trial, or are they part of the cover-up of the president?”

But several Republican senators on Sunday dismissed the idea of calling additional witnesses, saying it was up to the House to conduct those interviews before approving the articles of impeachment and sending them to the Senate.

“If the House isn’t prepared to go forward with the evidence that they produced in the impeachment inquiry, maybe they ought to withdraw the articles of impeachment and start over again,” Senator John Cornyn, Republican of Texas, said on “Face the Nation,” adding that it was not the Senate’s responsibility to do work that the House failed to do before voting to impeach Trump.

“This, to me, seems to undermine or indicate that they’re getting cold feet or have a lack of confidence in what they’ve done so far,” he said.

Senator Richard C. Shelby, Republican of Alabama, said his early assessment of the case against the president was that the House had not proved Trump was guilty of abuse of power or obstruction of Congress. He said senators should hear the arguments from both sides before making a decision on witnesses.

“If the case looks so flimsy, as some people say, if it’s nothing to it, it doesn’t rise to impeachable offenses, like a court of law, the court disposes of it,” he said on ABC’s “This Week.”

Some Democrats have suggested that the Senate should hear from Lev Parnas, an associate of the president’s lawyer Rudolph W. Giuliani. Parnas, who is under indictment on criminal campaign finance charges, was involved with Giuliani’s efforts to pressure Ukraine on Trump’s behalf and has provided texts, emails and other documents to House investigators.

Perdue dismissed Parnas, calling him a “distraction” and insisting that he had only secondhand information about the president’s actions.

“This is a person that’s been indicted right now. He’s out on bail,” Perdue said. “He’s been meeting with the House Intel Committee — if the House felt like this information was pertinent, I would think they would have included him in this, and his testimony in this.”

Representative Adam B. Schiff, Democrat of California, who is the lead manager in the impeachment trial, said the idea of refusing to call witnesses would be like a judge in a criminal case working with the defendant to make sure the prosecution could not call witnesses.

“No juror has ever heard that kind of thing from a judge because it would be absurd,” Schiff said on “This Week.” “It would be a mockery of a trial, not a trial, but that is what Senator McConnell to date is proposing.”

If the senators agree to seek the testimony of additional witnesses that would most likely extend the impeachment trial for at least several weeks. Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, one of the president’s closest Republican allies, said Trump was confident about the outcome of the trial but eager to have it over as quickly as possible — if possible before he delivers his State of the Union address, scheduled for Feb. 4.

“His mood is to go to the State of the Union with this behind him and talk about what he wants to do for the next — rest of 2020 and what he wants to do for the next four years,” Graham said on “Fox News Sunday.” “He is very much comfortable with the idea this is going to turn out well for him. He believes politically this has helped him.”

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Senior Democrats said they would include phone records and other documents provided by Florida businessman Lev Parnas when they make their case that Trump abused his power by pressuring Ukraine to investigate a political rival, Democratic former Vice President Joe Biden.

Parnas was an associate of Trump’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani, who says Parnas helped him investigate Biden. The Ukraine-born Parnas has pleaded not guilty to federal campaign-finance violations in a separate criminal case.

The late inclusion of Parnas’ records, which were only made available to investigators in the last few days, suggested Democrats were trying to further substantiate their case before it heads to the Senate for trial.

Trump became only the third US president to be impeached when the Democrat-majority House last month approved charges that he abused the powers of his office and obstructed Congress in its investigation into his conduct.

The House will vote on Wednesday to send the impeachment charges to the Republican-controlled Senate, kicking off a trial that could last through early February. It will also name the House lawmakers who will prosecute the case against Trump.

Those lawmakers will walk in a procession through the US Capitol to the Senate to present the articles of impeachment to the secretary of the Senate around 5 p.m. EST (2200 GMT) on Wednesday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office said in a statement.

The Senate is expected to acquit Trump, as none of its 53 Republicans have voiced support for ousting him, a step that would require a two-thirds majority in the 100-member chamber.

Pelosi had delayed sending the impeachment charges to the Senate in an unsuccessful effort to get Republicans who control the chamber to agree to include new witness testimony that could be damaging to the Republican president.

Republicans mocked Pelosi for the delay, saying it undercuts her argument that Congress needed to impeach Trump because he was inviting foreign interference in the 2020 presidential election.

Democrats said the delay allowed new evidence to emerge through government records requests – and now, the material provided by Parnas.

Democrats said Parnas’ phone included a screenshot of a previously undisclosed May 10, 2019, a letter from Giuliani to then-President-elect Volodymyr Zelenskiy of Ukraine.

“In my capacity as personal counsel to President Trump and with his knowledge and consent, I request a meeting with you,” Giuliani wrote, Reuters reported.

WITNESSES?

One of the most contentious issues that have yet to be resolved is whether to have witnesses in the Senate trial.

Democrats want to hear from current and former White House officials, such as former national security adviser John Bolton, whom they believe could provide insight into Trump’s pressure campaign on Ukraine.

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell has resisted the idea of calling witnesses or digging up new evidence in the trial, saying his chamber should only consider evidence that has been collected by the House.

Wednesday’s House vote would allow the Senate to begin considering the charges against Trump next week, McConnell said. All the senators present will act as the jury at the trial, which will be overseen by the head of the US Supreme Court, Chief Justice John Roberts.

Trump has denied any wrongdoing and has dismissed his impeachment as a partisan bid to undo his 2016 election win as he tries to win re-election in November.

“It’s just to try and smear this president because they know they can’t beat him at the ballot box,” White House spokesman Hogan Gidley told Fox News.

The case against Trump is focused on a July 25 telephone call in which he asked Zelenskiy to open a corruption investigation into Biden and his son Hunter, as well as a discredited theory that Ukraine, not Russia, meddled in the 2016 US election.

Joe Biden, whose son served on the board of a Ukrainian gas company, is a leading candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination to face Trump in the Nov. 3 election. Both Bidens have rejected the allegations and no evidence has emerged to substantiate them.

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A former Democratic governor of Hawaii called on the presidential hopeful on Monday to immediately resign from her seat in the lower chamber of US Congress.

Neil Abercrombie, who led the state from 2010 to 2014, personally phoned Tulsi Gabbard for voting in favor of Trump.

“I’ve left a detailed message for her as to what I was thinking, what I was doing and what I hoped she would do,” Abercrombie told Politico in a phone interview following his announcement. “I’m sure she pays attention to her voicemail.”

Abercrombie is a former longtime House member, who has himself resigned from Congress.

“Trying to do my job in Washington and run for office, another office, in Hawaii was just too difficult. I couldn’t do it,” he recalled. “I had hoped maybe I could do it, and it became obvious that I couldn’t. So I resigned my seat.”

In a historic vote on Wednesday, the lower chamber of US Congress voted to impeach the president over-pressuring Ukraine for personal political gain.

“Then she didn’t vote on the budget for next year… I thought, ‘That’s it.’ Regardless of what her intentions were or what her motivations are, she’s not able to do the job for the 2nd District,” Abercrombie said. “The bottom line for me is simple… I believe that the only really honorable thing to do and sensible thing to do and politically forthright thing to do is to resign the seat, let us have a special election and then see whoever wins that seat whether they can do a good enough job to win a primary in August and a general election next November.”

The majority of the lawmakers supported both articles of tulsi gabbard, abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. The abuse of power article was passed on a 230-197 vote and the obstruction article was passed by 229-198.

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TEHRAN (Iran News) – Impeachment charges against President Donald Trump went to the full House on Friday, following approval by the House Judiciary Committee.

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TEHRAN (Iran News) – Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has accepted the resignation of Agriculture Minister Mahmoud Hojjati, said a lawmaker.

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According To Iran News, While senators await the US House of Representatives to move into the public phase of their impeachment inquiry, aides and members are beginning to prepare for a likely Senate trial.

Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are cautious: there are no articles of impeachment and the House hasn’t voted to impeach the President. But, the logistical undertaking of a Senate impeachment trial isn’t an easy lift and can’t snap into action overnight leading to conversations that have begun in even small ways.

Talks are underway between Senate aides and even Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts’ team over simple things like where Roberts’ office will be during the trial, one Senate aide told CNN. The last time the Senate did this was the 1990s for the trial of then-President Bill Clinton, when staffers didn’t all need their own computers and the chief justice was housed just off the Senate floor in the Senate president’s room.

That room, logistically speaking 20 years later, isn’t likely to work in an era where staffers need hardwired internet. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky, has been preparing members for the reality of what is to come: six-day work weeks, no talking on the Senate floor and the reality that not much Senate business — if any — will get done.

And, behind the scenes, some members and aides have been brushing up on the Federalist Papers and re-watching the Clinton impeachment, trying to gear up for what is an incredibly complicated and unusual process.

“I have read through the Federalist Papers and (I’m) looking at precedent with regards to other impeachments in the past and will continue that legal analysis. But, the fact analysis, we will have to wait for the House,” Sen. Mitt Romney, a Republican of Utah, told CNN last week.

Senate Democrats are also getting ready, with Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, contacting 2020 presidential candidates who may be glued to the Senate chamber well into December and January — times when they’d typically be campaigning in Iowa. Multiple aides told CNN that Schumer has been having conversations with 2020 contenders about the next phase.

Schumer’s office has also set up a central document hub of information where staffers can go to access information on what the House’s impeachment inquiry looks like, Senate history and past impeachment battles.

Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Democrat of California, are in regular contact, per a senior Democratic aide. Schumer has asked his caucus to focus on a multi-faceted messaging strategy including that the House investigation must continue “unimpeded;” that senators have a responsibility to put country over party if a trial does take place; and the Senate “can and should” be talking about changing laws on gun safety, climate change, health care and election security even as the impeachment inquiry heats up, the aide said.

Schumer has held multiple conference calls with his caucus about impeachment, and the caucus has discussed this at Senate lunches.

A key question is whether lawmakers can come together to adopt a resolution on the rules of the trial, given the partisan nature of this impeachment inquiry.

During the Clinton impeachment, senators unanimously adopted a resolution that set the rules for that trial. Those rules set the witness list and schedule for things like when motions were due. Negotiations on such a resolution are not underway now, according to multiple aides CNN has talked to in the last several days, because members aren’t sure the way the articles of impeachment will be drafted.

There is some institutional knowledge for this inquiry, in that 28 members currently in Congress were in the House or Senate during the Clinton impeachment, according to an aide. That list includes Sens. Mike Crapo, Republican of Idaho, and Schumer, who were in the House for the impeachment in 1998 but then won election to the Senate in that year’s midterm elections. Both were in the Senate for Clinton’s trial in January and February of 1999. Frequent Trump ally Sen. Lindsey Graham, then a congressman from South Carolina, was also one of the House managers during the Clinton impeachment.

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Tillerson, whom Trump fired in a tweet in March 2018 amid friction between the two over North Korea, Iran and Russia policies, has largely refrained from discussing politics publicly since leaving Washington.

Speaking in Houston at a fundraiser for the UCross Foundation, an artists and writers residency program, Tillerson urged a “civil and thoughtful discourse,” saying that the current political rancor is widely viewed as equal to that during the Civil War.

“Perhaps the arts can help the American people reconnect with their country and remember how precious this Republic is,” he said to an audience of about 250 people. Tillerson received the Wyoming-based organization’s inaugural Award for Visionary Leadership.

The former diplomat later declined to comment on the Democratic-led impeachment inquiry under way in the US House of Representatives. The inquiry focuses on Trump’s attempt to get the government of Ukraine to investigate his Democratic rival Joe Biden.

“I’m concerned for our country. Both sides have got to get their act together,” Tillerson said in a brief interview, Reuters reported.

Since leaving the Trump administration, Tillerson, also the former chairman of Exxon Mobil Corp, has described the US President as an undisciplined leader who did not like to read. Trump has criticized Tillerson as “lazy as hell” and “dumb as a rock.”

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A deeply divided Congress formally opened a new, public phase of its investigation into President Donald Trump on Thursday as US lawmakers voted for the first time to advance the impeachment process targeting the US chief executive.

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According To Iran News, Democrats in Congress, answering Republican complaints that their impeachment investigation of US President Donald Trump is being conducted in secret, plan a vote on Thursday on how to make their inquiry public, a significant new stage in the probe.

Trump and his fellow Republicans have for weeks branded the work of committees probing Trump’s overtures to Ukraine as illegitimate, arguing the full Democratic-led House of Representatives had failed to authorize their investigations in a public vote.

Meeting behind closed doors, the House Intelligence, Foreign Affairs and Oversight committees have been looking into the possibility that Trump violated federal law by seeking foreign help for his November 2020 re-election efforts.

House Rules Committee Chairman James McGovern said on Monday, “I will be introducing a resolution to ensure transparency and provide a clear path forward.”

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff said in a statement the legislation would establish a format for open hearings. The US Constitution gives the House broad authority to set ground rules for an impeachment inquiry and Democrats say they are following House rules on investigations.

Several administration officials, including a former deputy national security adviser on Monday, have failed to testify to House committees engaged in the probe.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a letter to her fellow House Democrats the House will vote this week – on Thursday, according to a senior Democratic aide – on a resolution that spells out how future public hearings will be held, Reuters reported.

Pelosi promised to provide legal protections for Trump.

A source familiar with the probe said the public hearings will be held by the Intelligence Committee and that the transcripts from closed depositions with witnesses will be made public. A senior House Democratic aide said the hearings could begin within the next month.

The measure will set the stage for House investigating committees to forward evidence they have collected to the House Judiciary Committee, which would then decide whether to advance articles of impeachment against Trump.

Even if the House impeaches Trump, he would face a trial in the Republican-controlled Senate, which for the moment seems unlikely to convict the president and force his ouster.

Impeachment requires a simple majority in the 435-member House but conviction demands the support of a two-thirds majority in the 100-member Senate.

Charles Kupperman, a former deputy to ousted national security adviser John Bolton, failed to appear earlier on Monday before the three House panels conducting the Ukraine phase of the Democratic-led impeachment inquiry, lawmakers said.

Other panels are probing separate issues, including Trump’s finances and abuses of White House security clearances.

Kupperman put off testifying while asking a court to rule on whether he should comply with a congressional subpoena or honor the Trump administration’s order not to testify, his lawyers said last week.

Democrats in turn said they would not let further legal maneuverings delay their work.

At least nine others have testified despite being instructed by the White House not to do so, Schiff said.

Kupperman was expected to provide testimony about Trump’s dealings with Ukraine brought to Congress’ attention by a report from a whistleblower about a July 25 telephone call between the US president and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

Trump’s request to Zelenskiy that he investigate former US Vice President Joe Biden, a leading candidate for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, and his son Hunter Biden, who had served on the board of a Ukrainian gas company, is the focus of the inquiry being conducted by the three panels.

Trump made his request after withholding $391 million in security aid approved by the US Congress to help fight Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine.

A separate White House official, Alexander Vindman, a lieutenant colonel who sits on the National Security Council and who listened in on the call, is expected to tell lawmakers in a closed-door hearing on Tuesday that the conversation alarmed him so much that he raised concerns with an NSC lawyer.

But Trump again dismissed the inquiry in comments to reporters.

“I had a great conversation with the Ukrainian president. I had another with him also, I think before that, which was the same thing, it was nothing. They tried to take that conversation and make it into a big scandal,” Trump said on Monday.

Schiff noted that a federal judge had validated the legality of the Democratic-led impeachment inquiry in a decision about releasing information regarding a separate investigation, into Russian election interference in 2016, to Congress and that all witnesses need to come forward when called.

The Trump administration appealed that ruling on Monday.

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