Gutless Republicans Endorse Insurrection, Acquit Trump at Impeachment Trial

Seven Republicans joined the Democrats and independents in voting for a conviction

By PETER WADE


The Senate voted 57-43 to acquit former president Donald Trump during his second impeachment trial. Seven Republicans joined the Democrats and two independents in voting to convict, but the Senate fell short of the 17 Republican votes required for a two-thirds majority.

All 43 votes to acquit came from Republicans. The Republicans who broke with the majority of their party to convicting are:

Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.)
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine)
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.)
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska)
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah)
Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.)
Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Penn.)

Trump was impeached for “inciting violence against the Government of the United States” during the events on and leading up to January 6th as well as his efforts to overturn Joe Biden’s electoral victory.

The Senate trial came to a close Saturday afternoon following a back-and-forth in the morning around allowing witnesses to testify. Although the Senate voted 55-45 to allow witnesses Saturday morning after Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-Wash.) came forward with details about a call between Trump and Republican House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, impeachment managers and Trump’s defense lawyers reached a deal to bypass witness testimony. Instead of having Herrera Beutler testify, they entered her statement about the call into the official record.

It was a bizarre impeachment trial where the location of the trial was also the scene of the crime, and the jury was composed of victims of the attack. The Republicans’ refusal to convict Trump, even though his actions threatened their own safety, underscore the constitutional crisis we are living in.

As impeachment manager Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) said in his closing arguments, “This trial, in the final analysis, is not about Donald Trump. The country and world know who Donald Trump is. This trial is about who we are, who we are.”

He continued, “Are we going to defend the people who defend us? Not just honor them with medals, as you rightfully did yesterday, but actually back them up against savage, barbaric, insurrectionary violence?”

Apparently, the answer to his question is no.

https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/trump-acquitted-impeachment-trial-1128187/

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This is no surprise. Now it's time for the criminal prosecutions (and some civil as well.)

Here's a prime example of Trump Derangement Syndrome. It's not a problem for Democrats, or even some principled Republicans, but a mental disorder suffered by millions of brainwashed Trump followers. It's a letter to Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) written by one of his cousins and signed by 11 members of his family, following his vote to impeach Trump for inciting the riot at the Capitol.

"Oh my, what a disappointment you are to us and to God! We were once so proud of your accomplishments! Instead, you go against your Christian principles and join the "devil's army" (Democrats and the fake news media). How do you call yourself a Christian when you join the "devil's army" believing in abortion! We thought you were "smart" enough to see how the left is brainwashing so many "so called good people including yourself and many other GOP members. You have even fallen for their socialism ideals! So, so, sad!

President Trump is not perfect, but neither are you or any of us for that matter! It is not for us to judge or be judged! But he is a Christian. (If God can forgive and use King David in the Bible, He can do the same with President Trump.) Franklin Graham, Robert Jeffress, to just to name a few, of many Pastors who mentor President Trump, know that he is a believer!

Obviously, you did not hear President Trump's "Christmas Message" to the American people (fake news media did not cover his message) where he actually gave the plan of salvation, instructing people how to repent and ask the Savior into their heart to be "Born Again"! (To believe in John 3:16) When was the last time you proclaimed your faith Adam? (Oh, we forgot you now belong to the "devil's army.") You won't convince us otherwise with your horrible, rude accusations of President Trump! (To embrace a party that believes in abortion and socialism is the ultimate sin.) We should list even more grievances against you, but decided you are not worth more our time to list them. We have said enough!

You should be very proud that you have lost the respect of Lou Dobbs, Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham, Greg Kelly, most importantly in our book, Mark Levin and Rush Limbaugh and us!
It is now most embarrassing to us that we are related to you. You have embarrassed the Kinzinger family name!

We are not judging you. This letter is our opinion of you!

Oh, by the way, good luck in your fund raising endeavor. We are sure we know there are many other good GOP and CHirsitans (sic) supporters that feel the same way we do. Also very disappointed with the many other GOP that have sided with the Democrats. (We should demand our money back!)."

https://www.alternet.org/2021/02/adam-kinzinger/?utm_source=&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=6578

(also published at WaPo and NYT)

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Here's Kinzinger in an interview with CBS. I don't often have anything good to say about Republicans, but I admire this one.



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You still can't recognize a pattern yet? Really? You got lead around on a leash for four years.

Humans used to be so good at recognizing patterns. Not a good sign for humanity.

PkrBum wrote:You still can't recognize a pattern yet? Really? You got lead around on a leash for four years.

Humans used to be so good at recognizing patterns. Not a good sign for humanity.

Look in the mirror and see an even worse sign for humanity.

1 guilty plea to “Parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capital building”. Insurrection... lol. You know damn well that those things would be called "peaceful protests" given reversed parties. Silly comrades.

Direct Wray confirms: -0 charges being pursued for insurrection  -0 charged being pursued for sedition  -0 charges being pursued for illegal weapons. Why would anyone continue to believe false narratives? Riots and burning cities are "peaceful protests"... a halfassed unarmed selfie fest is an "insurrection". Why aren't you people questioning the politicians and the media? I can only assume that you enjoy being lied to as long as it's what you want to hear. Wake the fuck up.

521 people have now been charged. Stay tuned for more. And there is no doubt whatsoever that Trump incited that riot.

It's funny to me that Republicans blocked investigation of the insurrection... and then non-stop try to speculate on all kinds of whackaloon theories about it and go, "Why doesn't anyone want to look into our crazy underpants-on-our-head very-serious-person theories?!?"  Well, y'know, if ya funded a commission who were put together to investigate the things that happened, that might uncover things about those crazy theories... if they were, in fact, real, which of course they are not.

They don't get that they're only making things worse.  Kinzinger and a few others get it, but for the most part they just keep trying to brush this away and it only makes the guilt spread.   The fact that they aren't willing to address it makes them look like they condone it.  There's always an excuse.  "The Feds were in on it!  They made those Trump supporters do that bad thing -- everyone knows how easily-led they are!  And, anyway, it wasn't bad, anyway, they were only tourists!"   And then, of course, my favorite and theirs, "ANTIFA did it!"



Oh, the joys of being a grown-up and still having a boogeyman under your bed!  First it was "Acorn," and not "ANTIFAAAAA!"  They've been around forever but this is the first time conservatives heard of 'em ('cuz they don't ever seem to know about anything) and so now they're scared of 'em.   Which amuses the hell out of me, because literally the only enemies of Antifa are... Nazis.   The only people who need fear them at all are Nazis.  So their scare-mongering is like a confession.  

Anyhow, these desperate and increasingly-silly and far-fetched (if they go much further, dragons, aliens, and Rumplestiltskin are going to be involved) attempts to re-jigger a Trump-inspired riot into something-other-than-a-Trump-inspired-riot is useful in revealing a couple of things.   Number One:  Republican leaders think (or recognize) that their base is, mostly, composed of absolute idiots that you don't even have to bother making up good lies for, and, Number Two:  the Republican leaders are right -- their base is made up mostly of absolute idiots you don't have to bother etc.  Both those things are clear as can be now. Cascade rinse-action sparkling, baby. It's nice when liars find people who want to be lied to. Don't even need to bother with foreplay, just get right to the prevaricatin' and duplicity. Bomp-chika-bow-bow.


Maybe the feds et it!  Maybe Antifa et it!  Maybe it wasn't actually et at all, but was just a nice picnic and everybody had a good time!

Nobody would dare try to float such silliness unless they had supreme contempt for their base.   Tucker and all his ilk are basically saying, "Look, we don't necessarily think you'll actually believe this horseshit, but we know you'll play along with it because you're unprincipled fucks who don't give a damn about the truth or the facts.   So that's what we'll keep feeding you.

They also know that a sizeable chunk of their base are a bunch of violent morons, and they're actually scared of their own base.  If they don't feed those violent idiots the "the crazy right-wing white folks are the good guys and them damn blacks 'n' Meskins 'n' Chinese 'n' Muslims are all the BAD GUYS!" junk that they want, they'll get turned on as "race traitors" and become a target, too.  They figure they've already fucked up and created a monster, so now, rather than trying to put that monster down and save the rest of the world, they're hoping to make friends with the monster and be spared its wrath.  

Maybe if they'd, y'know, read a fucking book they'd see how that shit always turns out...  

They're eventually going to murder a whole lot of people based on their inability to question total bullshit, but in the mean time, get what enjoyment from their idiocy that you can. You don't get to see moronism on this big a scale very often... thank the gods.

"I was the person that came up with the January 6 idea with Congressman Gosar, Congressman Mo Brooks and then Congressman Andy Biggs. We four schemed up of putting maximum pressure on Congress, while they were voting, so that who we couldn’t lobby, we could change the hearts and minds of Republicans who were in that body hearing our loud war from outside." — Ali Alexander

This is Republican operative Ali Alexander talking on a now deleted Periscope video about his role in the DC riots and attempted coup.

For more, read / watch our report on Alexander, filed with the help of our photojournalist Zach D Roberts who's been working undercover to expose white fringe violence in the U.S.: https://www.gregpalast.com/why-did-th...

h/t Jason Paladino, who grabbed the Periscope video before it was deleted by Alexander.