The US Senate on Tuesday voted 56-44 to proceed with the impeachment trial of former president Donald Trump, finding jurisdiction under the US Constitution.
Lead impeachment manager Representative Jamie Raskin opened the day with a video depicting events from the January 6 storming of the US Capitol. The video began with Trump speaking at a rally and urging his followers to “stop the steal,” and then showed footage of the violent mob entering the Capitol on the day the Congress certified the results of the presidential election. At least seven people lost their lives, and more than 140 law enforcement officers suffered physical injuries that day.
Raskin then addressed the constitutionality of the proceedings, starting with the text of the constitution, Article I section 3, which grants the Senate the “sole power to try all impeachments.” Trump was impeached by the House on January 13 for incitement of the insurrection on January 6. Both of these events occurred while the president was still in office. According to Raskin, there is overwhelming consensus among legal scholars on both ends of the political spectrum that the constitution allows for impeachment proceedings even after an individual has left office. The founding fathers were particularly concerned about abuses of power that could interfere with the peaceful transfer of power. Impeachment is about more than removal from office: it is also about accountability. For this reason, Raskin urged senators to reject Trump’s claims of a “January exception” that prohibits impeachment of a president once he is no longer in office.
One of Trump’s defense lawyers, Bruce Castor, laid out a number of arguments in his opening statements: that the trial is unconstitutional, that the president’s speech is protected under the First Amendment, and that he is not responsible for the events on January 6. The defense accused Democrats of politicizing the impeachment process. Trump replaced his legal team at the beginning of February, following disagreements regarding legal strategy.
Six Republican Senators joined the Democratic Senators to proceed with the impeachment trial. One of those Republicans, Senator Bill Cassidy, said, “One side’s doing a great job. And the other side’s doing a terrible job on the issue at hand.” Oral arguments begin on Wednesday. Each side will be given up to 16 hours for up to two days to present their case before the Senate jurors.
