It’s not even the morning after as I send this and already, columns and commentaries have offered chapter and verse on Donald Trump’s trial for insurrection.
So I can keep this short.
If, like me, you firmly felt that Trump deserved to be convicted, you can take comfort at least in this: you are in the majority.
True, Senate rules call for two-thirds of the senators to convict, so Trump dodged that bullet. But never forget: 57 out of a hundred of those senators— who represent the whole of the American people— thought he was guilty as sin. 57 out of a hundred. In politics, that’s not even a thin margin. It is only thanks to the anachronistic rules of the Senate that the amoral minority of 43 had their way. If it comes back to haunt them, I won’t shed a tear.
And that, of course, followed Tuesday’s mandate of a majority— 56 to 44— that contrary to the duplicitous prevarications of Trump’s counsel, the impeachment trial was constitutional. Before that, in the House of Representatives— the “People’s House”— it was 232 to 197 to impeach.
If you feel like me, you are in the majority.
No surprise here. We’ve known since November. Once the ballots were counted, Trump became the one thing he can’t stand: a loser. His bloviating lawyers kept talking in the trial about being faithful to the 74-million Americans who voted for his reelection. What they conveniently forgot to mention were the 81-million— the majority— who didn’t.
If like me, you firmly felt that Trump deserved to be convicted because the deaths, the disfigurements, the destruction, the distress, the dangers of January 6th wouldn’t have happened without the poison planted by Donald Trump, never forget: you are in the majority.
This is more than a moral victory. It will be the verdict of history. This malignant man will go down as history’s only president to suffer the indignity of two impeachments. And Warren Harding, Andrew Johnson, James Buchanan, move over: between the swamp of his whole presidency and especially after his pathetic and pernicious performance during the pandemic, Trump is on track to long be remembered as history’s worst president.
If you need more immediate gratification, remember this: civil suits that could cost Trump his shiftily-won fortune are on his horizon, and I won’t be surprised if federal prosecutors, waiting in the wings with a courtroom full of evidence, anticipated the verdict in the Senate and are preparing to indict the ex-president for the criminal count of incitement. Donald Trump might end up wishing he’d only been convicted at the Capitol.
If like me, you firmly felt that Trump deserved to be convicted for incitement of insurrection , never forget: you are in the majority.
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For almost five decades Greg Dobbs has been a correspondent for two television networks, a political columnist for The Denver Post, a moderator on Rocky Mountain PBS, and author of “Life in the Wrong Lane.” He has covered presidencies at home and international crises around the globe. He won three Emmys, and the Distinguished Service Award from the Society of Professional Journalists. Some of Greg’s essays also are published on BoomerCafe.com.
Well put Greg, I think most of us knew that the cowardice in the Senate, which is still under the misguided influence of a shamed ex-president would never speak their conscience in a vote for impeachment. However, there is still some disappointment as I had hoped for more of them to flip their vote. Having said that, there are still seven senators who did vote their conscience and carried out their patriotic duty, thereby providing the largest bipartisan vote to impeach a president in our history, that's pretty major. Agreed, there must be prosecutors in the wings ready to develop cases to indict on a hopefully criminal level, one of which will be successful in removing this vermin from our streets. Thank you for your excellent assessment - Dave Dillingham
It is interesting that the majority voting to convict in the Senate is pretty close to the most recent national poll on the public opinion on the subject, which was 56%....and rising. (That poll took place over a week ago.) And, with Republican voters leaving the party in large numbers - over 4,000 in Colorado alone since the election - we can maybe look forward to a period where moderate to left candidates have a chance. (Trying to follow your lead and find a bright spot in the darkness that was yesterday.) Thanks, Greg!