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Home Front: Politix
Senate Votes - 57 - 43; Trump Acquitted
2021-02-13
The usual suspects - Cassidy, Sasse, Romney, Toomey, Murkowski; I didn't catch the other ones.
[Yahoo] Former President Donald Trump on Saturday was acquitted by the U.S. Senate of the charge that he incited the deadly insurrection at the Capitol on Jan. 6.

Yahoo News is providing an uninterrupted live stream of the proceedings as well as instant analysis from our reporters at the trial in Washington, D.C., and elsewhere.
Better luck next time, assholes...
Yahoo was liveblogging this all day, so go to the link for the sausage-making. Thank you for being on top of this for us, Raj.
Update from PJ Media:
In a speech after the acquittal vote, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer
...Senator-for-life from New York, renowned for his love of standing in front of cameras and microphones. Schumer has been a professional politician since 1975, when disco was in flower, which is 45.19295 years. Senate minority leader as of 2017...
(D-N.Y.) claimed that Republicans who voted to acquit Trump had voted to "condone" the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021. This argument suggests the Democrats will continue to pursue Republicans on the claim that conservatives are a threat to democracy.

The Senate seemed primed to call witnesses after news of a bombshell phone call between Trump and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy
...the GOP house majority whip. He replaces Eric Cantor, who got whupped because his politix are like Kevin McCarthy's...
(R-Calif.) in which Trump reportedly attempted to blame antifa for the storming of the Capitol on January 6, and then defended the rioters. He reportedly told McCarthy, "Well, Kevin, I guess these people are more upset about the election than you are."

After the vote, Trump released a statement thanking his "team of dedicated lawyers and others for their tireless work upholding justice and defending truth."

"Our cherished Constitutional Republic was founded on the impartial rule of law, the indispensable safeguard for our liberties, our rights and our freedoms," Trump added. "It is a sad commentary on our times that one political party in America is given a free pass to denigrate the rule of law, defame law enforcement, cheer mobs, excuse rioters, and transform justice into a tool of political vengeance, and persecute, blacklist, cancel and suppress all people and viewpoints with whom or which they disagree."

"I always have, and always will, be a champion for the unwavering rule of law, the heroes of law enforcement, and the right of Americans to peacefully and honorably debate the issues of the day without malice and without hate," the former president added.

"This has been yet another phase of the greatest witch hunt in the history of our Country," Trump argued. "No president has ever gone through anything like it, and it continues because our opponents cannot forget the almost 75 million people, the highest number ever for a sitting president, who voted for us just a few short months ago.

The former president concluded his remarks with a promise of more to come.

"Our historic, patriotic and beautiful movement to Make America Great Again has only just begun. In the months ahead I have much to share with you, and I look forward to continuing our incredible journey together to achieve American greatness for all of our people," he said. "There has never been anything like it!"

In a speech after Schumer, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Trump was ultimately responsible for the Capitol riot. He condemned Trump for "false statements, conspiracy theories, and reckless hyperbole" after the 2020 election. He also condemned "the increasingly wild myths — myths — about a reversed landslide election."

McConnell acknowledged that Democrats have engaged in reckless remarks that may have incited violence, but he insisted that Trump’s rhetoric was worse.

He also faulted Trump for reportedly not acting swiftly enough to stop the Capitol riot.

"The unconscionable behavior did not end when the violence actually began," McConnell said. "Whatever our ex-president claims he thought might happen that day, whatever reaction he says he meant to produce, by that afternoon, we know he was watching the same live television as the rest of us."

"A mob was assaulting the Capitol in his name. These criminals were carrying his banners, hanging his flags, and screaming their loyalty to him. It was obvious that only President Trump could end this. He was the only one who could. Former aides publicly begged him to do so. Loyal allies frantically called the administration. The president did not act swiftly, he did not do his job," McConnell said.

"When the president did, half-heartedly, begin calling for peace, ... he kept repeating election lies and praising the criminals," the Republican leader argued.

Yet McConnell argued that impeachment is a "narrow tool for a narrow purpose," citing former Supreme Court Justice Joseph Story.

"By the strict criminal standard, the president’s statement was probably not incitement," the Republican leader admitted.

Yet he claimed the entire argument was moot because the Senate could not remove him from office. Trump was president when the House passed the article of impeachment, but not when the House passed the articles on to the Senate.

"The text is legitimately ambiguous," he said, yet by his lights, it is not constitutional to convict a former president. "We have no power to convict and disqualify a former officeholder who is now a private citizen."
He has some principles, so I would vote for him instead of a Democrat. I don’t imagine he is so politically naive as to joint the Lincoln Project/Evan McMullin/Mitt Romney third party — with 74 million Trump voters, even if he won his state, there wouldn’t be the bodies to give him the committee chairs he needs to do his thing. Another one to primary with a solid Trump/TEA Party candidate.
Posted by:Raj

#23  Words fail me to describe the slimy bunch of low-life politicians lynch mobsters who put on this Stalin-like show trial to take down Trump. His defense team did a great job. A shameful time in American history.
Posted by: JohnQC   2021-02-13 23:40  

#22  Beautifully analyzed, Deadeye Jaiting7534, and chock full of insights I could feel but lacked the understanding to articulate.
Posted by: trailing wife   2021-02-13 23:34  

#21  Remember the squishes that voted for this shit.

They will pay.
Posted by: DarthVader   2021-02-13 22:29  

#20  2 of them are on the way out, and were borderline RINOs anyway.

Collins was expected. She's barely holding the seat there. But the GOP needs her in order to get a majority again, and anyone any more conservative than her will not get elected. So we ignore her for now.

Cassidy is not up again until 2026. GOP in Louisiana just censured him. He is a disloyal fuck - Trump endorsed him in the primary and the general election. People need to plan to run against him, and lay the groundwork for ousting this swamp creature. LA is red, so replacing him will no likely result in a loss of the seat.

Romney, Murkowski, Sasse?

Each one of those is in a state easily winnable by a real conservative GOP Candidate. Trump needs to bankroll a good conservative in Utah, Alask and Nebraska this summer to take each of these asshole RINOs down. And start tearing Murkowski down now - find the dirt, and start shoveling, drag her into the mud like the pig she is. As for Romney? Start beating him down as well.

One more: McConnell will likely retire, but if that zombified turtle necked toad decides to run again, primary he ass into the weeds of his fundamentally weaselly ways and dishonesty. And kick him out of the leadership position so that if the GOP gets a senate majority in 2022, that greasy sumbitch is NOT the senate leader.
Posted by: Deadeye Jaiting7534   2021-02-13 22:01  

#19   *that isn't his army. Those are the States', and I want them back home.

As I recall, the Red states brought their units home petty quickly after January 6th. Which would mean these lads and lasses are from Blue states only, with all sorts of interesting results from the experience,
Posted by: trailing wife   2021-02-13 21:00  

#18  Free DC by 3/3!

Posted by: Maggie Hupomp2614   2021-02-13 20:47  

#17  Like I said, a distinction without a difference - politicians would treat it as legit, lawyers and scholars would be cancelled and/or fired for pointing out the difference, history books would be printed as such, and the crows would kaw until anyone who knew better forgot.

*that isn't his army. Those are the States', and I want them back home. Last time we had weather like this hay had to be dropped to the cows by helicopter.

Bring the troops home.
Posted by: swksvolFF   2021-02-13 20:23  

#16  Only a government as feeble and/or illegitimate as Biden would keep its own army of occupation in the capital city. The United States government is officially a disgrace. They make me ashamed to be an American.
Posted by: Abu Uluque   2021-02-13 20:13  

#15  In a speech after the acquittal vote, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer claimed that Republicans who voted to acquit Trump had voted to "condone" the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

Couldn't read any further. Schumer is a damn liar. The senators did no such thing. Nobody condones the attack on the Capitol, least of all Trump himself. The truth is that 43 senators had enough integrity to put an end to this nonsense. It's a disgrace that no more of them did.
Posted by: Abu Uluque   2021-02-13 20:01  

#14  ^ U Right - They Wrong - Idiotte
Posted by: Martin Waldseemüller1520   2021-02-13 19:54  

#13  He wasn't aquitted of anything, not being a formal and proper hearing. Putting the clerk behind the bench does not make him a Judge.

Everyone would have pretended it was legit though.

It was a TV show with shit ratings, and the rumor is it got the ax when the list of potential witnesses came out, including Palosi; I'd guess every face in the video was on the list.

I'd been like Harvey Dent in Dark Knight, after disarming the witness and court adjourned, "But I haven't had the chance to make my case!"
Posted by: swksvolFF   2021-02-13 19:44  

#12  Congress total 535 members with voting privileges
or the number of Village Idiots sent from their respective State to 'represent the voice of their State's people'. With only 57 of them, potentially able rise to the status of moron.

Gott im Himmel hilft uns.
Posted by: Martin Waldseemüller1520   2021-02-13 19:40  

#11  Corrupt DC is a town that continues to be a disgrace to the rest of the U.S. with a power hungry population's extreme hatred of people that get in their way.
Posted by: Ebbomoger Speaking for Boskone4589   2021-02-13 18:51  

#10  Every silver lining has a cloud, rj.
Posted by: Bobby   2021-02-13 18:50  

#9  I was hoping for the parade of hundreds of witnesses that would have delayed any other Senate business for months.
Posted by: rjschwarz   2021-02-13 18:43  

#8  Now, Biden will close "Club Gitmo", speck'd he kept it open, just in case the verdict went the other way.
Posted by: Odub CrawfordArea5121   2021-02-13 18:34  

#7  Lamestream media is already pretty much down to "Well... He's still a poopyhead!"
Posted by: M. Murcek   2021-02-13 18:15  

#6   Romney, Collins, Murkowski, Cassidy, Burr, Sasse and Toomey

Senators Toomey and Burr have already announced they won’t be running for reelection when their current terms are up. As for the others, primary ‘em when they’re next up for election. Preferably with Trump/TEA Party candidates, but Anybody But Them will do in a pinch. Let ‘em join the Democrats or the loser Lincoln Project/Evan McMullin/Mitt Romney third party, and end up ignored in the hustings and with no seats in Congress.
Posted by: trailing wife   2021-02-13 17:47  

#5  NoMoreBS - thanks, mate.

As they were doing the vote, the NBC feed showed pictures of each Senator as they voted and the old saw still applies (especially notable on the Dem's side) - politics is indeed show business for ugly people.
Posted by: Raj   2021-02-13 17:15  

#4  ...Romney, Collins, Murkowski, Cassidy, Burr, Sasse and Toomey
Posted by: NoMoreBS   2021-02-13 16:56  

#3  WaPo hinted at threat of violence if this happened, and Bidet keeping troops in DC through 2021. Wonder if they know what is coming because they are planning it as Trump begins to emerge from the shadows following this sham.
Posted by: NoMoreBS   2021-02-13 16:55  

#2  Nancy and Chuck hit hardest.
Posted by: jpal   2021-02-13 16:27  

#1  Now it will actually be fun to listen to the Hollyweird crowd whine and wail.
Posted by: M. Murcek   2021-02-13 16:12  

00:00