Today, Donald Trump, a man who has been accused of sexual assault or rape by twenty six different women, and who has spent his life bouncing from one failed business or bankruptcy to another, while somehow retaining an image as a smart businessman, avoided punishment once again. Yes, the most corrupt, lazy and incompetent president ever still has enough power in his party, even when he's no longer in office, to scare Republican Senators out of doing the right thing and impeaching him.
Sadly, Trump's acquittal was a foregone conclusion, with most Republican Senators dismissing the charges against him even before the proceedings began. Some of them even made a point of ignoring the trial while it was taking place. This is all upsetting, as the Democrats case against Trump had been made so strongly, with numerous video clips and maps showing how much worse the capitol riot could have been, and how complicit Trump was in inspiring the rioters.
On the plus side, the final vote was fifty seven in favor, forty three against (with sixty seven votes needed to impeach), showing that at least some Republicans were willing to stand up to their former president. In fact, this impeachment vote was the most bipartisan in American history. And in an oddly surreal moment, Republican Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell voted against impeachment, and then gave an address in which he made a blistering attack against Trump, saying that “There’s no question, none, that President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day.” He also added “He did not do his job. He did not take steps so federal law could be faithfully executed and order restored. No, instead, according to public reports, he watched television happily, happily, as the chaos unfolded.” Despite his harsh words, McConnell really showed the cowardice that the entire Republican party has shown ever since Trump first started his campaign in twenty fifteen. With every racist comment, every offensive tweet, every violation of any rule of common decency, McConnell and the rest of his party have ignored, shrugged off or explained away everything Trump has done, when they aren't praising him. While I agree with McConnell's words in his address, his vote was still deplorable. He could have held Trump responsible, and he chose not to.
So was the impeachment trial a big waste of time? Not at all. Even if Trump emerged seemingly unscathed, it's hard for most Americans who aren't under his spell to not see how terrible his behavior has been. Even as he brags about how he won again, his standing in both his party and the country in general should take a hit.
More importantly, this trial was being made to mark a historical record of an unprecedented time in our country. Although the entire Trump ordeal has been horrible, it has been his behavior in the past few months, after the election was truly over, that has been so despicable. Never before has any president ever contested an election that he lost. Never before has any president said so often and so forcefully that the election was somehow unfair. Trump's short attention span saw him flit from one outrageous lie to another, from the voting machines being rigged to massive illegal voting. And when his ball of lies inspired a violent riot, a riot that resulted in the death of five people and the injuring of dozens of others, it was imperative of congress to make a case against him, even when he was out of office, to clearly show that America can not allow any person, even the president, from trying to dismantle democracy for their own gain.
It is important to remember that everything said in the impeachment trial will be entered into a permanent historical record. Trump's speeches, the actions of the mob, Trump's failure to respond, everything. Hopefully, the trial will be studied as a cautionary tale of what can happen to a democracy when an autocratic leader who refuses to play by the rules is in charge. America must never have another Trump like president, and this impeachment trial may play a role in preventing that. And that's no waste of time.
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