US President Donald Trump railed against a Democratic Party "consumed with hatred" after he was impeached Wednesday for abuse of power and obstructing Congress.
In an extraordinary split-screen moment, as the House was casting votes to impeach him, thousands of Mr Trump's most fervent supporters were cheering him at a rally in Michigan where he railed against his critics.
"While we're creating jobs and fighting for Michigan, the radical Left in Congress is consumed with envy and hatred and rage, you see what's going on," the Republican leader seethed. "These people are crazy."
Mr Trump said the Democratic Party, which controls the House of Representatives where the votes took place, was "trying to nullify the ballots of tens of millions of patriotic Americans."
Four more years, four more years," the crowd chanted back.
Mr Trump had spent the first part of the day holed up at the White House, tweeting in frustration.
Supporters of President Donald Trump cheer during the campaign rally. Source: AAP
"Can you believe that I will be impeached today by the Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats, AND I DID NOTHING WRONG! A terrible thing," Mr Trump said in his opening tweet.
Despite testimony from 17 officials that the US president leveraged his office for political gain, he maintained his innocence throughout the impeachment inquiry - denouncing it as a "witch hunt," an "attempted coup" and an "assault on America."
Ahead of the vote, White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said it was just an ordinary day for the president.
"The president will be working," she said.
She even suggested that the famously television-obsessed Republican would skip live coverage of the House of Representatives, whereby evening he was likely to become only the third US president ever impeached.
He "could catch some of the proceedings" and otherwise "will be briefed by staff," Mr Grisham said.
