Trump’s second impeachment was acquitted on a technicality, but will he be so lucky during upcoming criminal trials?
On Saturday, former US President Donald Trump was acquitted from his second impeachment charge.
The acquittal comes as a cold hard wake up to the technical injustices of the US Justice system. Despite 57 votes for guilty and 43 not guilty, Trump’s acquittal was passed on the basis that two-thirds of the Senate had to vote for or against his conviction (67 votes).
The overpowering guilty vote (but technical win) comes after a largely disorganised and scrambling trial by the defence team.
Majority Senate leader Chuck Schumer noted that “this [trial] was about choosing country over Donald Trump. And 43 Republican members chose Trump… it shall be a weight upon their conscience in the future.”
2-0
— Eric Trump (@EricTrump) February 13, 2021
Republican minority leader Mitch McConnell justified his vote for acquittal as a technicality due to the former president being “constitutionally not eligible for conviction.” McConnell seemed to forget that it was he who refused to hold Trump’s impeachment trial during his presidency and delay it until after he stepped down.
His lawyers, hired just one week before the trial, scrambled in their arguments, misspelling ‘United States’ not once but twice on two separate documents. Louisianan Senator Bill Cassidy added that Trump’s team were not only disorganised but were almost “embarrassed of their arguments.”
Trump’s defense lawyer got a belly laugh out of the Senate after a podium-pounding rant, then angrily retorted: “I haven’t laughed at any of you!”
— Greg Walters (@thegregwalters) February 13, 2021
Trump might have scraped out on a technicality, but the upcoming criminal trial in Manhattan may not be so lenient.
Investigations are currently taking place on the potential financial crimes in Trump’s business ventures. The case, according to NPR’s Andrea Berstein, involves unpaid tax returns, as well as possible bank, tax, and insurance fraud – all of which involve serious prison time.
Trump is also facing possible charges regarding his campaign to change election results in Georgia. This includes his cooked phone call to Georgia’s Secretary of State to “find” the missing votes.
This might be a legal battle he can’t work his way out of.
Lol, 57 senators say trump is guilty and 43 said he isn’t. Yet the 43 are the ones out here claiming victory.
😂. American democracy.
— Covie (@covie_93) February 14, 2021
