Name: Historians say impact of expected Trump acquittal will be felt for years
Brand: axios.com
SKU: axios-com-78
Availability: OnlineOnly

critic

Historians say impact of expected Trump acquittal will be felt for years

preview

Trump at a December rally to support Republican Senate candidates. Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty ImagesIt's not lost on historians that Donald Trump's likely impeachment trial acquittal could fall on Presidents' Day weekend, a holiday celebrating the examples set by America's first president, George Washington, and Abraham Lincoln, who held the republic together through civil war and ended slavery.Why it matters: Through his repeated efforts to overturn the election, Trump put the country through one of the toughest tests of democracy it has ever faced. Historians say his expected acquittal on a charge of inciting the Jan. 6 insurrection will have consequences we are only beginning to understand — and they'll be felt for years.The big picture: Historians are examining this moment — the election fraud lie, the efforts to overturn the results through violence, the impeachment of a president days before his exit, and the actions of his own party to block his conviction — through many lenses.The power of impeachment: That's pretty much gone. Historian Douglas Brinkley says Trump's acquittal will make the limits of its power obvious: it's a political process, not a legal one.America's changing demographics: Renee Romano, an Oberlin College professor who specializes in the field of historical memory, says the impeachment outcome raises the question: "Can America ever truly be a multiracial democracy?'"Congress leaves the field: With this acquittal, the Senate has passed on two chances to hold a president accountable for undermining the power and authority of Congress, said Andrew Rudalevidge, an expert on presidential power.The bottom line: The speedy trial was designed to allow America to move on — but the wounds from Jan. 6 are so deep that it's nowhere near ready to move on.This story has been updated to clarify the timing of the vote.Donald Trump's legal team will on day four of the former president's impeachment trial, seeking to wrap up the proceedings as soon as possible given the beating they’re taking from the media and the strength of the Democrats’ presentation.The big picture: Trump is unlikely to be convicted on the House's single charge of "incitement of insurrection," as only a handful of Republicans have signaled their intention to vote against the party's most popular figure. But the House managers' presentation of chilling, never-before-seen security footage from the Jan. 6 Capitol assault may make that vote more difficult.Donald Trump's legal defense will focus entirely on process, Axios has learned.Why it matters: The attorneys representing the former president know it's fruitless to continue defending his actions preceding the Capitol attack. Instead, they'll say none of that matters because the trial itself is unconstitutional — an argument many Republican senators are ready to embrace.Donald Trump's legal team argued four key points during its defense of the former president on Friday — all focused on process.The big picture: The lawyers delivered a swift defense in which they called the House charge that the former president incited the Jan. 6 insurrection a "preposterous and monstrous lie." In their presentation, the defense team asserted that the trial itself is unconstitutional; there was no due process; convicting Trump violates his First Amendment rights; and impeachment fails to unify the country.

Trump at a December rally to support Republican Senate candidates. Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty ImagesIt's not lost on historians that Donald Trump's likely impeachment trial acquittal could fall on Presidents' Day weekend, a holiday celebrating the examples set by America's first president, George Washington, and Abraham Lincoln, who held the republic together through civil war and ended slavery.Why it matters: Through his repeated efforts to overturn the election, Trump put the country through one of the toughest tests of democracy it has ever faced. Historians say his...

public

Margaret Talev

David Nather

Smart Brevity worthy of people's time, attention and trust. Subscribe to our newsletters: https://bit.ly/3hMCmVn

Historians say impact of expected Trump acquittal will be felt for years

No article scores yet.

CRITIC REVIEWS

PUBLIC REVIEWS