THE LEDE

As I started writing this the morning of the historic impeachment vote, the most-read story on our website was about a dog. Democratic presidential candidates were talking this week about climate change and each other. But by the end of the day, here's what people were reading on BuzzFeed News:

Klobuchar’s timing: Molly’s story on how slow Amy Klobuchar was to support marriage equality offers a glimpse of what it means to be a “moderate”: Not that her positions always differ from the more progressive candidates, but that she didn’t make her career by coming to them first. Biden, it’s easy to forget, has been more progressive on many social issues than his rivals, including coming out hard for marriage equality when he was vice president, and dragging President Obama along.

Bernie’s heart: Whatever happened to political profiles and ambitious writing that really tries to understand the candidates as people? It’s a bit of a lost art, but Ruby revealed elements of Bernie Sanders that surprised me in her profile of him, and also included this hilarious (if not totally surprising) exchange with his wife, Jane:

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Madeleine Dean

Rep. Madeleine Dean is a first-term Democratic lawmaker from the suburbs of Philadelphia — the kind of swingy district where Trump needs votes in order to win reelection. But she had no qualms about voting for both articles of impeachment today, and called it a “matter of conscience” during her speech on the floor. We chatted shortly after the vote.

IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Selfie of Rep. Madeleine Dean with her son, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter MADELEINE DEAN: She was asleep. We woke her up for you, Ben! BEN SMITH: Oh god. So what’s the atmosphere like inside the chamber today? Actually first.

BEN SMITH: Why did you bring a baby to the Hill today? MADELEINE DEAN: Very somber and serious on our side. Because as I considered this I realized it was more than a single moment. It is a generational duty and Ella is a sweet reminder of our duty. BEN SMITH: One of your Republican colleagues compared you unfavorably to the Roman official who condemned Jesus. What do you make of that?

IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Tweet from @joshtpm reading, “Rep. Loudermilk: When Jesus was falsely accused of treason, Pontius Pilate gave Jesus the opportunity to face his accusers.” MADELEINE DEAN: I take my faith seriously and it’s so outrageous that it doesn’t even warrant a text. BEN SMITH: Are you hoping to be chosen as an impeachment manager? MADELEINE DEAN: I don’t want to speculate, but I would be honored if given that serious responsibility.

BEN SMITH: If you were one, how do you change Republican senators’ minds? Is that even the goal at this point? MADELEINE DEAN: I am not one that believes it’s a done deal once it hits the senate. I think there are many thoughtful senators who will look at the evidence and truly evaluate the President’s actions and words. BEN SMITH: Back in April, you said you thought the Mueller report did suggest the President committed obstruction of justice. Are you disappointed that you couldn’t vote today on that and other articles?

IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Headline from the Pennsylvania Real-Time News reading, “U.S. Rep. Madeleine Dean on Muelle Report: Congress will come down to its own determination about obstruction of justice.” MADELEINE DEAN: Hold on. Just walking. BEN SMITH: No rush. MADELEINE DEAN: I am not disappointed. I am confident in the well crafted articles and my votes tonight.

BEN SMITH: In the end, it seems likely that Trump is acquitted by the Senate at the end of all of this. Are you concerned that this will have further divided the country for nothing? MADELEINE DEAN: I remain an optimist that Senators will see their Constitutional responsibility with clarity. But if they do not, impeachment won’t have been “for nothing.” It is an important holding of this President to his oath of office and an important signal to future presidents and future generations that no one is above the law.

BEN SMITH: And finally, your son Pat has had some pretty good tweets. Does it make you nervous when he makes jokes about Speaker Pelosi? MADELEINE DEAN: Only when they’re lame… The Speaker has a good sense of humor.

BEN SMITH: Thanks for taking the time. And we’ll be watching the vote. MADELEINE DEAN: Thank you! You sure don’t have more? This was fun.You don’t want to ask me about white claws? BEN SMITH: Uh. Tell me about white claws. MADELEINE DEAN: Ha! BEN SMITH: What was this about?

IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Tweet from @MadeleineDean reading, “Idk just passing laws and drinking claws. You get a job yet, Pat?” in response to a tweet by her son reading, “Long day, huh @RepDean?” with a picture of Rep. Dean holding a White Claw. MADELEINE DEAN: Bingo. Of all of our tweets who would’ve known this one would be the most viral. Ha! It was my first time trying it and my staff sent it to my son as a joke.

BEN SMITH: Thank you for clearing that up. MADELEINE DEAN: It was fun. Thanks for doing this, Ben. BEN SMITH: *Two prayer emojis.* MADELEINE DEAN: *sunglasses smiley emoji* *heart emoji*

ON THE TRAIL WITH BUZZFEED NEWS

All of the top Democratic candidates are urging the DNC to change their debate rules, Ruby reports.

Ryan has a great story on the young socialists who are using TikTok to appeal to younger voters.

A sweeping story from Ema looks at how this decade was disastrous for abortion rights.

In case you were under a rock last night, Donald Trump got impeached.

Tulsi Gabbard, who is still running for president, was the only member of the House to vote "present" on impeachment.

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