Impeachmen' 2: Electoral Boogaloo

[Dill]

(02-09-2021, 03:34 PM)michaelsean Wrote: That right there isn't enough for anything.  He can yell they stole the election all he wants. That doesn't make him responsible for people acting violently.  I don't know all the things he said, but you have to show where he called for this or something akin to it.  

The bolded may be the essence of a "right to free speech" defense in criminal court. Trump's defense might rightly point out that his inciting speech does not include the words "I hearby incite you to sack the Capitol."

I myself don't think Trump intended those he called and assembled to actually break into the Capitol; rather he only wanted them to disrupt the peaceful and legitimate transfer of power by intimidation--so implied rather than actual violence. And still an attempted coup.

I'm not sure that the prosecution has to meet the "free speech" bar in an impeachment hearing, since the issue is really Trump's behavior AS PRESIDENT.

I.e., Did his actions violate his oath of office and show supreme unfitness to hold public office ever again? Were his actions UTTERLY unconnected from those of the people whom he called to DC and incited to "peacefully" fight for their country or lose it FOREVER?  He told his followers Pence could "stop the steal" if he voted right, and that crowd pressure could influence Pence. But why should Trump and a crowd of followers, ready to WHATEVER he asked, be rallying AT ALL on the day electoral ballots are certified and long after the election was officially decided? 

Trump's behavior during the investment of the Capitol is also telling here, as he enjoyed the spectacle for hours while people in the Capitol, fearing for their lives, frantically called for National Guard help. Then he blessed the rioters in a Tweet asking them to "go in peace" but remember the day "forever." 

Trump's overall judgment is on trial here, from calling for a rally on Jan. 6 to "standing by" during the riot, to the final video to his supporters blessing them as "patriots" who should now go in peace but remember the day "forever."

As is that of his Congressional supporters, though they may not be on the dock.