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EXPLANATOR: The historic second impeachment trial of former US President Donald Trump begins Wednesday (New Zealand time), forcing the US Senate to decide whether to convict him of inciting insurrection after a violent mob of his supporters besieged the United States Capitol on January 6.
While Trump’s acquittal is expected, the 100 senators will first have to sit at their desks and listen to hours of graphic testimony from Democrats about the riots, which left five people dead.
Samuel Corum / Getty Images
Ethan Cusey, 22, of Virginia, holds up a sign that reads “HONK 4 IMPEACH” outside the US Capitol on December 18, 2019 in Washington, DC.
The House indicted Trump on January 13, a week after the violence.
Here’s a look at the basics of the upcoming impeachment.
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* Trump declines the invitation to testify in next week’s impeachment.
* The impeachment of Donald Trump comes to the Senate, testing his influence over Republicans.
* The 10 Republicans who voted to impeach the President of the United States, Donald Trump
HOW DOES THE TRIAL WORK?
The Constitution of the United States says that the House of Representatives has the exclusive power to impeach you while the Senate has the exclusive power to try the individual on the charges. The accused, who can be the president, vice president, or any civil servant of the United States, can be convicted by two-thirds of the senators present.
The House appoints the administrators as prosecutors who go to the Senate, along with the defendant’s attorneys, to present their case. Prosecutors and Trump’s defense team will have a set amount of time to present arguments, and then senators can ask questions in writing before the final vote.
Uncredited / AP
Senator Patrick Leahy, president pro tempore of the Senate, presiding over the impeachment of former President Donald Trump, swears in members of the Senate for impeachment at the United States Capitol in Washington.
The Chief Justice of the United States normally presides over a president’s trial, but because Trump has left office, the president will be Senator Patrick Leahy, who is the ceremonial head of the Senate as the oldest member of the majority party. . .
Once the senators come to a final vote on the impeachment charge, this time there is only one, incitement to insurrection, each legislator will stand up and cast their vote: guilty or not guilty.
HOW LONG WILL THE TRIAL LAST?
Unclear. The Senate has to accept the rules of the trial and party leaders are still working out the details.
Trump’s first impeachment trial, in which he was acquitted of charges of abuse of power by pressuring Ukraine to investigate now-President Joe Biden, lasted nearly three weeks. But this is expected to be shorter, as the case is less complicated and senators already know many of the details, having been on Capitol Hill during the insurrection.
John Minchillo / AP
Violent protesters, loyal to US President Donald Trump, storm the Capitol on January 6 in Washington.
And while Democrats want to make sure they have enough time to present their case, they don’t want to tie up the Senate for long.
The Senate cannot confirm Biden’s cabinet nominees and move forward with its legislative priorities, such as Covid-19 relief, until the trial is complete.
WHY TRY TRUMP WHEN YOU’RE OUT OF THE OFFICE?
Republicans and Trump’s lawyers argue that the trial is unnecessary, and even unconstitutional, because Trump is no longer president and cannot be removed from office.
Democrats disagree, pointing to the views of many jurists and the impeachment of a former secretary of war, William Belknap, who resigned in 1876 hours before being indicted for a bribery scheme.
Although Belknap was ultimately acquitted, the Senate held a full trial. And this time, the House impeached Trump while he was still president, seven days before Biden’s inauguration.
If Trump were convicted, the Senate could hold a second vote to bar him from returning to office. Democrats feel it would be an appropriate punishment after he told the angry crowd of his supporters to “fight like hell” to reverse his electoral defeat.
Democrats also argue that there shouldn’t be a “January exception” for presidents who commit crimes they can challenge just before leaving office. They say the trial is necessary not only to properly hold Trump accountable, but also so that they can deal with what happened and move on.
“You can’t move on until justice is served,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said this week. “If we don’t continue with this, we could also remove any sanction from the Constitution of impeachment.”
HOW IS THIS TRIAL DIFFERENT FROM TRUMP’S FIRST TRIAL?
Trump’s first trial was based on evidence uncovered over several months by the House about a private phone call between Trump and the president of Ukraine, as well as closed-door meetings that took place before and after.
Democrats conducted an extensive investigation and later compiled a report of their findings.
In contrast, the second trial will be based almost entirely on the visceral experience of a riot that targeted the senators themselves, in the Capitol building. The insurgents even breached the Senate chamber, where the trial will take place.
Julio Cortez / AP
In this Jan.6 photo, Trump supporters try to break through a police barrier on Capitol Hill in Washington. For America’s allies and rivals alike, the chaos that unfolded during Donald Trump’s final days as president is the logical result of four years of man-made global instability who vowed to change the way the world viewed. To united states.
New memories of January 6 could make it easier for House impeachment managers to make their case, but that doesn’t mean the outcome is different.
Trump was acquitted in his first trial a year ago with only one Republican, Utah Sen. Mitt Romney, voting to convict, and there may not be many more guilty votes this time.
In a trial vote on January 26, only five Senate Republicans voted against an effort to dismiss the trial, an early indication that Trump is likely to be acquitted again.
WHAT WILL TRUMP’S LAWYERS ARGUMENT?
Regardless of the constitutionality of the trial, Trump’s lawyers say he did not incite his supporters to violence and did nothing wrong.
“It is denied that President Trump has endangered the security of the United States and its institutions of government,” they wrote in a brief for the trial.
“It is denied that he threatened the integrity of the democratic system, interfered with the peaceful transition of power and endangered an equal branch government.”
J. Scott Applewhite / AP
According to a poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, roughly half of Americans say the Senate should vote to convict former Donald Trump at the end of his impeachment. And most think he bears at least some of the blame for the Capitol uprising on January 6.
Trump’s lawyers also say he was protected by the First Amendment to “express his belief that the election results were suspect.”
There was no widespread fraud in the elections, as Trump falsely claimed for several months and again to his supporters just before the insurrection.
Election officials across the country, and even former Attorney General William Barr, contradicted his claims, and dozens of legal challenges to the election brought by Trump and his allies were dismissed.
WHAT WOULD ACQUITTAL MEAN TO TRUMP?
A second acquittal of impeachment by the Senate would be a victory for Trump, and would demonstrate that he retains considerable influence over his party, despite his efforts to subvert democracy and the widespread condemnation of his fellow Republicans after Jan.6.
Susan Walsh / AP
House Secretary Cheryl Johnson along with Acting Sergeant at Arms Tim Blodgett lead Democratic House impeachment managers as they walk through Statuary Hall on Capitol Hill to deliver the article of impeachment alleging incitement to the Senate. to the insurrection against the former president. Donald Trump on January 25 in Washington.
Still, acquittal may not be the end of attempts to hold you accountable. Senators Tim Kaine and Susan Collins introduced a no-confidence resolution after last month’s vote made it clear that Trump was unlikely to be convicted.
While they have not yet said whether they will push for a no-confidence vote after impeachment, Kaine said this week that “the idea is on the table and may become a useful idea in the future.”
Associated Press writers Eric Tucker and Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.
