It Was Not a Waste of Time

 

I am as happy as anyone glad to have Donald Trump out of office. But I’m also glad that the impeachment trial is over. We knew how it was going to end. That said, it was still important.

The House managers created a masterful argument that put most of the pieces of the January 6 Capitol attack together. Unlike the Mueller report, which took forever, the prosecution in this trial had only a couple of weeks to build a case, but they did it. We learned a lot from both of these efforts, even though neither produced a result satisfying to many of us.

Some fault the prosecution for caving on the issue of witnesses, but I agree with the conclusion that presenting them wouldn’t have changed anything – and actually WOULD have been a waste of time.

I also think it’s now a waste to be talking about what may have motivated the senators who voted “not guilty.” Were they afraid of being primaried, losing financial contributions, angering the violent elements of their base, or did they just overdose on Kool-Aid? It doesn’t matter now, the only thing that counted was their vote, and history will be their judges.

While I’m glad that Senator Mitch McConnell put his criticism of Mr. Trump into the record, there was something insulting about it. Before the impeachment trial, whose scheduling was largely in McConnell’s control, the majority of the Senate voted that the trial itself was Constitutional, even though Mr. Trump was out of office -- which meant that McConnell’s vote should have been based on the merits of the case, merits which he seemed to have agreed with.

Perhaps there is a basis for the dispute over the legal meaning of the word “incite” in considering what Trump did, but It all seems to fall under Bill Maher’s popular theme, “I don’t know it for a fact, but I know it’s true.” It WAS sufficiently proven for 57 senators – not enough to convict, but still a pretty good showing. Impeachment is supposed to be difficult. As for legal actions that can still be brought against Trump in Georgia and New York, it looks like he’s caught with smoking guns clearly in his hands.

At least now, the federal government can focus its full attention on still-looming crises. As for smoking guns, though, for those folks out there still interested in Civil War II, I hope President Biden and his team clearly communicate that while they’d rather not fight one, they are ready to defend our republic with any means necessary.