US House impeachment managers filed a pre-trial brief on Monday challenging former president Donald Trump’s claims that his second impeachment trial is unconstitutional and that it was his speech that incited the Capitol attacks on January 6.
The pre-trial brief is directly in response to the answer Trump filed arguing against his second impeachment. In it, the house managers denied “each and every allegation in the Answer that denies the acts, knowledge, intent, or wrongful conduct charged against President Trump.” They argue that the claims made in the answer are all without merit, including those presenting legal defenses for Trump’s actions.
The managers cited Trump’s calls to “‘fight like hell’ or ‘you’re not going to have a country anymore'” as well as his repeated claims about a “rigged” and “stolen” election to support their claims that his speech is not being challenged because it is an “unpopular political opinion,” but because it “willfully incited violent insurrection against the government.”
The pre-trial brief claims that Trump not only incited the attacks but escalated them with his statements. It reasserts that the only impeachable offense that Trump is currently being faced with is inciting violence against the US government:
As charged in the Article of Impeachment, President Trump violated his Oath of Office and betrayed the American people. His incitement of insurrection against the United States government—which disrupted the peaceful transfer of power—is the most grievous constitutional crime ever committed by a President. There must be no doubt that such conduct is categorically unacceptable. The House will establish at trial that President Trump merits conviction and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit under the United States.
The impeachment trial is scheduled for Tuesday, and security has remained high at the Capitol. It is the first time a president is being impeached after leaving office, and Trump is the first president to have been impeached twice. His first impeachment came from claims of abuse of power and obstruction of justice.
