Former President Donald Trump, after the Senate acquitted him of the charges against him, teased a return to the political arena in his post-presidency on Saturday – but he could still try to punish him for the January 6 attack on the Capitol by its supporters.
The Senate could not reach the threshold of 67 votes to condemn Trump for inciting an uprising as charged in the House’s article of indictment. There were 57 votes for conviction and 43 “innocent” votes.
“Our historic, patriotic and beautiful movement to make America great again has just begun,” Trump said in a statement following the vote. “In the coming months, I have a lot to share with you, and I look forward to continuing our incredible journey to achieve American greatness for all our people.”
But in the coming weeks and months, Trump may also make constant attempts to hold himself accountable for allegedly inspiring a crowd of his followers to storm the US Capitol during the January 6 joint session to announce the outcome of the presidential election confirm. The rioters desecrated the building and forced hundreds of lawmakers and former Vice President Mike Pence to hide when they chanted, among other things, ‘hang Mike Pence’.
FILE – On this Wednesday, January 6, 2021 file photo supporters of President Donald Trump climb the western wall of the American Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo / Jose Luis Magana)
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“There is no doubt … that President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Said after the Senate vote that Trump acquitted. McConnell voted that Trump was innocent. But he said his vote was not a reflection of Trump’s actions, and that it was rather an expression of his view that the Senate does not have the authority to hold an indictment for a private citizen.
McConnell added that the attack “was a predictable consequence of the growing crescendo of false statements, conspiracy theories and reckless hyperbole that kept the defeated president shouting in the largest megaphone on planet Earth.”
“President Trump is still accountable for everything he did while in office,” McConnell continued. “He has not escaped anything yet. We have a criminal justice system in this country. We have a civil lawsuit.”
Indeed, there is an open criminal investigation in Georgia into the call Trump made to Republican Brad Raffensperger, who has put him under pressure to “find” enough votes to dispel the outcome of Georgia Biden’s presidential election. turn.
US President Donald Trump speaks to supporters of The Ellipse near the White House in Washington, DC on January 6, 2021.
((Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI / AFP via Getty Images))
And some Democrats are also campaigning for a separate way to ban Trump from holding office in the future, as accusations have failed.
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“I do think we need to spend months and months laying down all the evidence that can be obtained through a 9/11 style commission,” sen said. Chris Coons, D-Del., On ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday. “And a number of Republicans have already come forward and said there should be further accountability, either through a criminal trial or through some other way of preventing the office.”
Coons appears to be referring to the 14th Amendment, which some Democrats say could be used to prevent Trump from running again. The amendment was adopted in the aftermath of the Civil War and was aimed at preventing former U.S. officials who had defected to the Confederacy from holding office in the U.S. government again.
It excludes people “who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States … would practice against the uprising or rebellion or help its enemies or comfort. “The amendment gives Congress the power” through appropriate legislation “to enforce it.
Some Democrats therefore interpret it as a way to ban Trump from office without removing the 67-vote barrier of an indictment.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, DN.Y., was asked last week about the use of the 14th Amendment and refused to rule it out.
Trump attorney Michael van der Veen dismissed the possibility that Trump could face any liability in the future, in an interview with CBS News, saying McConnell’s comments were specifically just brilliant.
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“No, it’s just political rhetoric. And I was hoping that something would come out of this that would stop the political rhetoric from Washington DC, but I don’t think so,” he said. “I’m not surprised to hear a politician say anything, no.”
Many Republicans have also had the idea in recent weeks of adopting a motion of censure against Trump – legislation that would simply express the sentiment of Congress that what Trump did was bad.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, rejected the idea at a news conference Saturday because he gave Republicans the chance to say they condemned the former president without actually taking a hard vote with consequences.
“Censorship is a slap in the face of the Constitution. It gives, leaves everyone off the hook. It leaves everyone off the hook,” she said. “All these cowardly senators who could not see what the president did and what was at stake for our country are now going to get the chance to give a small slap on the wrist? We condemn people for their stagnant use for the “We are not condemning people for inciting uprisings that are killing people in the Capitol.”
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Meanwhile, members of both parties are supporting a 9/11-style commission to investigate what led to the January 6 attack. This commission would not necessarily have the power to punish the former president or anyone else. But that would, according to Coons on “This Week,” “expose the record of how responsible and how abrupt the violation of his constitutional oath that President Trump really was.”
Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., Speaks as the Senate Judiciary Committee of Legal Experts hears on the final day of the confirmation hearing for nominated Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, October 15, 2020. (AP Photo / J. Scott Applewhite)
Sen. Lindsey Graham, RS.C., told Fox News Sunday a commission would help clarify how there was so little security at the Capitol on January 6, despite the likely repeated warnings that Congress could be in danger .
“Did Nancy Pelosi know on January 5 that the Capitol was threatening? What did President Trump do after the attack? We need a 9/11 commission to find out what happened to make sure it never happens again.” he said. ‘And I want to make sure that the Capitol footprint can be better defended next time, so I want to see what Pelosi knew when she knew that what President Trump did after the attack and on the side of the Senate, the leadership of the Senate has been informed of a threat. . “
He added: ‘I would like to know, the Capitol Hill police informed the House Sergeant and the Senate Sergeant a day before the attack that they needed more troops, so I wanted to investigate it all. ‘
But Graham also rejects the idea that Trump could face further consequences for his actions, which include months of false allegations that he won the presidential election in the run-up to his January 6 speech, which he said would be “wild” ahead of time.
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During the speech, Trump told supporters to march “peacefully and patriotically” to the Capitol. Defenders point to the remark as a reason why Trump was not responsible for the looting of the Capitol. Those who supported his accusation said the remark did not outweigh the balance between his post-election rhetoric, which Graham said was ‘on top’ on Sunday.
However, Graham did not go as far as McConnell in condemning Trump wholesale and referring to possible criminal charges against the former president.
‘Well, I think Sen. “McConnell’s speech obviously got a load off his chest, but unfortunately he placed a burden on the backs of Republicans, ‘Graham said of McConnell’s speech. “I would imagine if you were a Republican going on in Arizona or Georgia or New Hampshire, where we have a chance to take back the Senate, they might play Sen. McConnell’s speech and you as a candidate about it. “And I think you’re a current Republican, it’s going to be people asking you: ‘Will you support Sen. McConnell in the future?’
Graham added: “I think his speech is an outlier on how Republicans feel about it all.”
Fox News’ Kelly Phares contributed to this report.