Donald Trump was acquitted of inciting the horrific attack on the U.S. Capitol, concluding a historic impeachment trial that spared him the first-ever conviction of a current or former U.S. president.
Barely a month since the deadly Jan. 6 riot that stunned the world, the Senate convened for a rare weekend session to deliver its verdict on Saturday, Feb. 13, voting while armed National Guard troops continued to stand their posts outside the iconic building.
Seven Senate Republicans joined Democrats in voting to convict Trump on a charge of insurrection arising from the Capitol riot. The defections were significant, the most against a president of their own party in any impeachment, but the vote still fell 10 short of the two-thirds majority needed.
Voting to find Trump guilty were GOP Sens. Richard Burr of North Carolina, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah, Ben Sasse of Nebraska, and Patrick Toomey of Pennsylvania.
Trump, unrepentant, welcomed his second impeachment acquittal and said his movement “has only just begun.” He slammed the trial as “yet another phase of the greatest witch hunt in the history of our Country.”
“By once again putting their one-man cult over the wellbeing of this nation, 43 Republican senators not only failed to hold Donald Trump accountable for inciting a deadly insurrection, but they failed to protect our country, our constitution, and our very democracy,” said Rep. Pramila Jayapal.
A new ABC News/Ipsos poll finds over half of Americans (58%) say that Trump should have been convicted. The 43 Republican senators, by voting to acquit, have set a terrible precedent. Refusing to surrender power when you have lost an election is the most dangerous threat. And, now, future presidents who wish to cling to power know they can go to all lengths to overturn the election and not be punished, so long as they can hold the allegiance of a third of the Senate.
Big tech companies like Amazon have suspended contributions to any member of Congress who voted to override the election results. Amazon made more than $1.94 million in total PAC contributions in the 2020 cycle. Microsoft has said it will not make any political donations until after it “assesses the implications” of the riot. Total PAC contributions by Microsoft in the 2020 cycle—more than $1.87 million.
While you and I don’t have the deep pockets of Amazon and Microsoft, we wield an important power—the power of our vote. Remember who voted to acquit Trump the next time they are up for re-election.