Not too surprisingly Big Don has now been impeached a second time. The first ever President to have been impeached twice. Even Republicans recognising that the man is an absolute liability. It comes as no surprise that the Democrats voted to impeach but the most significant thing, at least for me, is that even his own party has in part turned against him. Last time no Republicans voted to impeach BD but this time 10 Republicans voted to impeach including Lois Cheney the third highest ranking Republican in the House and even Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell fell short of calling all other Republicans to vote against impeachment. Stage two, the trial, requires at least 17 Republicans in the Senate to vote to convict for a prospect of Big D being convicted and apparently 19 have indicated that they are prepared to consider doing just that. For me there is no doubt he incited the mob to storm the Capitol and should be convicted and should be remembered as the lunatic President who threatened democracy.
I am surprised they are bothering with this as he will not be President by the time the Senate vote is taken. However it is possible that a vote to impeach/remove would mean they could ban him from serving in an official capacity ever again. Would like to see that happen as I suspect it could lead to all sorts of protests and riots, which always make for good TV.
Won't be removed, Senate has never once done it. He also never explicitly stated they should cause violence. A lot of Presidents have raised the temperature so high a riot has started, the key difference this time is he clearly hoped a massive protest at the Capitol would erupt. Both Obama supporters and a Bernie supporter have killed people in the past without those politicians being blamed. I'd expect no different now.
I suspect a lot of it is being done to control what he does in his last few days in power. Now that he has already been impeached it makes it more difficult to issue pardons to people that have broken the law, and much more difficult to pardon himself and his family, without alienating too many right of centre voters for 2024. I think it has already influenced his tone in the statements he is making. There is no way he would be condemning those supporters who rioted so explicitly if he didn't have the threat of impeachment hanging over him. I also suspect it would help the republicans more than the democrats if he was impeached and barred from office, as the alternative will likely see a split in the party.
If Big Don is impeached then the Senate (not 100% sure if them) can then vote to prevent the outgoing president from running for office again, preventing an anticipated campaign from Trump in 2024. Also Donald Trump may also be exempt from receiving benefits enjoyed by other former presidents. This includes a $220,000 a year pension, a security detail, paid office space,
It would be the Senate that would vote on that. Unlike the vote for his impeachment conviction or acquital which needs 67% of the Senate for conviction, a vote to bar him from holding office would only need a simple majority too. If he is convicted he will almost certainly be barred. Conviction in the first place is less likely though - but not impossible by any means.
It's all political theater designed to paint all Trump supporters as dangerous. I voted for him twice because of what he's done, not what he's said. Is he an ass? Yes, he is. But he has delivered on so many promises. He has actually forced Mexico to to stop caravans of illegal immigrants at their southern border. He has lowered unemployment rates to historic lows for everyone. He has reduced the number of Americans deployed in danger (my two sons fall into this category, which is why he earned my vote). He has created an energy boon here, reducing our dependence on foreign oil. His biggest sin? Exposing the corrupt politicians on both sides. The Republicans would love to get rid of him because he threatens the norm. The Democrats want him gone because he fights back, and hard. They aren't used to that. I don't worship Trump. I voted for Obama and against him. I voted for Clinton (Bill), and against him. What Trump has started is a grass roots movement of America first, which, while sounding nationalist, is actually good policy. We should look to take care of our citizens first. What he started won't go away, and I predict that every Republican that voted for his impeachment will be out of office next cycle.
While I suspect I would disagree with you on most things political, I agree the highlighted bit is the biggest danger going forward. And it is happening on both sides. I don't agree that it is all political theatre, as in my opinion he has crossed too many lines, but it is true that there is too much of a demonisation of people who vote in ways others don't agree with. I lived in the States for a year and ended up marrying (and divorcing) an American. I still have many friends in the States. Judging by their facebook pages, some of them voted Trump though most of them voted for Biden. All of them are good people who I am proud to call friends. Thanks to social media, too many of us live in echo chambers now. We only hear from people who already agree with us. Too many people have lost the ability to debate without resorting to insults, whether that be calling each other Nazis or snowflakes, fascists or commies. It isn't a problem restricted to the States, though it plays out most obviously there. In the US this has resulted in what we see today.
Apparently he has instructed his staff not to pay legal fees to Rudy Giuliani. You couldn't make it up.
You almost had me “T”ing this post but then I saw through the pack of lies with just one word evidencing that it was all untrue fabrications. “Friends”?? Come on, we’ve met. You’ve got friends in the same way Chippy gets his round in.
The Republicans are quite likely to support impeachment and ban Trump from office so that they can rid themselves of a political liability. Trump is the first president in decades to manage to lose the White House and both houses of congress. He can mobilise quite a lot of voters for himself but doesn't seem to be able to mobilise them for his party. If he cannot be on the ticket, I think the hope is that he becomes an irrelevance so that the Republicans can select a candidate who may actually win.
I agree that it's probably true that the vast majority of Republican lawmakers want rid of him but I think the majority of them will publicly back him. They are terrified of losing Trump's base and not being seen as one of the ones who betrayed him. They only need 17 senators to switch though. There may be one or two (like Romney) who will do it openly out of dislike for Trump or out of conscience, but if they really want rid of him then they need some of their older senators to take one for the team and accept that they may have to sacrifice their own careers for the good of the party. It also needs to be people who have no ambitions to run for president one day. Their problem is that none of them are exactly known for self sacrifice. I think the key will be Mitch McConnell. He has no desire to run for president and may not be too worried about any personal impact. If he pushes for conviction then he may well be able to sway enough to join him to secure it. The younger ambitious ones will continue to court Trump's base by appearing to support him, even though they are the ones who want him gone most so that they can run in 2024.
It's not in Mitch McConnell's interests to support an impeachment. Even if Trump isn't on the ticket for 2024 he has an incredibly loyal following that isn't going away. Any Republican, including Mitch, will be looking over their shoulders for a primary challenge. For Mitch, he'll just want it to go away. Hence why he isn't pushing for a vote.