Trump is acquitted, but the vote shows a split among Republicans

57 members of the Senate voted in his favor, to 43 against sentencing Donald Trump for his role in the January 6 storming of the Capitol. This was not sufficient for the two-thirds majority required to oust the forty-fifth American president. But the trial once again revealed that the Republican Party is grappling with Trump’s legacy.

As noted earlier, the majority of Republicans voted against the conviction for various reasons. Seven Republican senators ended in disagreement, and they voted for conviction. Never more Senators have voted against their party.

It is a sign of the divisions that the Trump era is leaving for Washington. This was confirmed by the Republican leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell. Minutes after he voted against conviction, he opened the verbal attack on Trump in the Senate floor.

According to McConnell, there is no doubt that Trump was responsible for the events of January 6. The Republican said what Trump did before the riots began testified to a “shameful lack of sense of duty.” The Republican said that the rioters did what they did “because the most powerful man in the world fed them lies” by refusing to acknowledge his defeat in the presidential elections on 3 November.

McConnell said the vote against him was for purely procedural reasons. According to him, the Senate no longer has the power to convict a president who does not exist. McConnell did not state that he himself prevented Trump from being tried during his tenure. Republican now considers the matter a criminal jurisdiction.

The trial thus reveals once again the line between Republicans who continue to love Trump – often for electoral reasons – and those who want to distance themselves. The fact that Trump has not been politically exhausted by acquittal – the former president is free to pursue political office once again – threatens to widen this divide.

Trump himself feels immune to the statement. For the first time since the proceedings began, he made himself heard again from the Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida in a written statement.

Trump said: “Our wonderful, historical and patriotic movement, Make America great again, still in the beginning,” disguising once again a victim of a “witch hunt.” “I have a lot to share with you over the coming months, and I look forward to continuing this wonderful adventure …”

There is disappointment and discontent among Democrats, but President Joe Biden keeps it remarkably moderate. He said in a press release that Donald Trump may have been acquitted in the impeachment trial, but that “ the content of the indictment has not been questioned. ” This sad chapter in our history reminds us that democracy is fragile. It must always be defended. We must always remain vigilant.

Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader in the Senate, was eager for his Republican colleagues. January 6th will be a day of shame in the history of the United States of America. He said failure to convict Donald Trump would be a disgrace in Senate history.

Schumer said the incitement to storm the Capitol was “the most heinous act a president has ever committed.” However, Schumer says, the majority of Republicans did not have the courage to condemn the act. “January 6, in mind forever. Another terrible legacy of the 45th President of the United States, and it is without a doubt our worst.”