Senate Votes 56-44 To Proceed With Impeachment Trial Against Trump

February 9, 2021
Written by Martin Walsh

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The impeachment trial for former President Donald Trump kicked off in the Senate on Tuesday, beginning with debate over the constitutionality of the House prosecuting a president who has already left office.

After four hours of arguments by each side, the Senate affirmed by a vote of 56-44 that it is constitutional to try a former president.

Below are the six Senate Republicans:

  • Mitt Romney
  • Susan Collins
  • Lisa Murkowski
  • Pat Toomey
  • Ben Sasse
  • Bill Cassidy

Trump’s lead counsel Bruce Castor opened his arguments with praise for the impeachment managers’ “outstanding presentation,” adding that no member of the Trump team will voice anything but a condemnation of the rioters on Jan. 6.

In a meandering opening speech, Castor argued Democrats want to convict Trump because they fear he’ll run again in 2024. Toward the end of his speech, he conceded: “We changed what we were going to do on account that we thought that the House managers’ presentation was well done.”

Castor’s main argument is that the electoral system worked and Democrats got what they wanted — to remove Trump from office — as he lost the election to Joe Biden.

Lawyer David Schoen showed a video of Democrats calling to impeach Trump starting in 2017 and argued that the House moved to do a “snap impeachment” following the Jan. 6 insurrection.

Schoen charged that because Trump is now a private citizen and cannot be removed from office, the trial is unconstitutional. He added that the former president is being deprived of due process, including because the presiding officer — Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) — is also a juror.

Trump will almost certainly be acquitted, absent any late and groundbreaking evidence against him.