“When the President does it, that means that it is not illegal.” – Richard Nixon, 1977
This week, (former President/current wistful golfer who won’t stop telling you about that cameo he once made in what a lot of people are calling the best ever Home Alone sequel) Donald Trump found himself in familiar terrain. Yes, this week saw Democrats taking to the Senate floor in what a lot of people are calling the best ever impeachment sequel.
Democrats spent their time making a reasonable case that Trump’s words spurred a mob of his followers to attack the Capital on January 6th. They made effective use of, among other things, video footage from the attack itself, social media posts made by the rioters, and a litany of President Trump’s own comments to his supporters over the years. Through it all, they mostly tried to steer clear from placing blame on other Republicans, hoping to woo some of them into voting with the Democrats. But will they? Won’t they?
Republicans, unsurprisingly, mostly seemed unmoved. Lindsay Graham tweeted that he found the presentation “offensive and absurd.” Ted Cruz said that the trial was a waste of time, and the result of “seething partisan anger on the part of Congressional democrats.”
It was clear the Senate Republicans had already chosen who would be their Valentine. They’d been smitten ever since getting collectively struck by stupid’s arrow in 2016. But how would they defend their President?
“You can’t incite what was already going to happen,” argued Michael Van der Veen, one of Trump’s attorneys. He also referred to the trial as “Constitutional Cancel Culture.”1I was planning to make this argument as a joke, and then it turned out to be their actual defense
Long story short: Trump’s team is seeking to frame this trial as a free speech issue, and the “impartial” Republican Senators listening seemed quite willing to accept that framing.
“You can see where this would lead,” Van der Veen said.
One can certainly see where this is leading. If any of us held on to romantic notions that our Republican Senators would be moved by the attack on the Capital to do the right thing, this trial and its inevitable outcome should serve as a reminder that some stories aren’t romances. They are farces, but they are equally capable of ending in tragedy.
Be good to each other! Enjoy your weekend!