[imagesource: JT/STAR MAX/IPx 2021]

Yesterday, former President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial began.

For those keeping count, this is his second impeachment trial.

Trump is charged with inciting the attempted insurrection that took place at the Capitol on January 6, due to falsely claiming he won the election and encouraging the riot, which falls under “high crimes and misdemeanors”.

To kick off their argument, Democrat House impeachment managers played a 13-minute video outlining some of what happened that day, reports NPR:

The video — much of which emerged publicly in the days after the insurrection, and some of which apparently was taken by those participating in the riot — showed Capitol police being overrun by the mob, people using flag staffs to break the building’s windows, a police officer screaming as he was attacked and the gunshot that killed Ashli Babbitt, one of five who died during the violence.

For the Trump supporters who stormed the Capitol, it’s all about ‘law and order’, and ‘back the blue’, until Donnie loses an election, I guess.

Interspersed with footage of the attack were Trump’s words from the speech he gave shortly before the Capitol was breached:

The tape included chants of “Stop the steal” and “No Trump, no peace.” One apparent Trump supporter tells an officer inside the Capitol, “We are listening to Trump — your boss.”

The video displays a tweet from Trump calling into question the intentions of then-Vice President Mike Pence — whose job was simply to preside over the certification — followed by videos of Trump supporters shouting “Hang Pence.”

Trump was also shown in a clip from later in the day, when he told the insurrectionists to “go home, we love you.”

Still, more than a month later, it remains somewhat surreal that this took place in America.

Settle in because this one is all action:

When the video finished playing inside the Senate, with elected officials from both sides of the aisle watching on in horror, Rep. Jamie Raskin, the Democratic senator for Maryland, pointed up to the screen and said:

“You ask what a high crime and misdemeanor is under our Constitution,” he said to the hushed chamber, “that’s a high crime and misdemeanor. If that’s not an impeachable offense, then there is no such thing.”

Just six Republicans, and all 50 Democrats, voted to proceed with impeachment proceedings.

Day two will begin at noon in Washington DC, or 7PM South African time.

[source:npr]