With the House’s move to impeach former President Trump for the second time, many questions are raised: what would him being convicted look like and what would that mean for the country?
People from both sides have spoken out against this topic, one of whom being Democratic Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. She stated on January 13, “The president must be impeached and, I believe, the president must be convicted by the Senate, a constitutional remedy that will ensure that the republic will be safe from this man who is so resolutely determined to tear down the things that we hold so dear.” Meanwhile, Republican and now Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell stated, “They were provoked by the President and other powerful people. And they tried to use fear and violence to stop a specific proceeding of the first branch of the federal government which they did not like.” It is worth noting that despite this statement, McConnell voted against the impeachment proceedings, saying that Trump is no longer President, making such an act unconstitutional.
As for the current President of the United States, President Joe Biden’s remarks on the matter goes as follows: “What the Congress decides to do is for them to decide, but we’re going to have to be ready to hit the ground running.” This is in reference to Biden’s start of his presidency, saying that he wants to be ready to go and get things done as immediately as possible. Former President Trump has not made any public statements on this matter due to his lack of news coverage and bans from social media.
Since Former President Trump has been impeached again, this has now made him the first President to have been impeached twice. If the Senate convicted Former President Trump, he could lose some perks of no longer being President, such as a pension and secret service detail. He would also lose the ability to run for office again in 2024, which Former President Trump has implied wanting to do.
In the impeachment resolution, it states the following: “Thus incited by President Trump, members of the crowd he had addressed, in an attempt to, among other objectives, interfere with the Joint Session’s solemn constitutional duty to certify the results of the 2020 Presidential election, unlawfully breached and vandalized the Capitol, injured and killed law enforcement personnel, menaced Members of Congress, the Vice President, and Congressional personnel, and engaged in other violent, deadly, destructive, and seditious acts.”
Currently, it seems that some, mostly Democrats, are putting most of the blame on people such as Former President Donald Trump, Donald Trump Jr, Trump lawyer Rudy Guliani, Senator Ted Cruz from Texas, and Senator Josh Hawley from Missouri. Meanwhile, others, predominantly Republican, are arguing the antithesis saying that this was not Trump or anyone else’s fault and that Trump should not be impeached since he is no longer a sitting president.
The senate voted on February 13 on whether or not to acquit Trump for the allegations that he incited his supporters to riot at the Capitol on January 6. The votes were 57-43 in favor of acquitting Trump, closing the case and giving the former president a chance to run again in 2024.