In a Saturday afternoon vote that fell largely along party lines, the Senate voted 57-43 against impeaching the former Republican president.
The US House of Representatives impeached Trump in January for “incitement of insurrection” in relation to the deadly storming of the Capitol by a mob of his supporters.
Democratic Senator Bob Menendez, who voted to impeach Trump on Saturday, slammed his Republican colleagues for failing to convict the ex-president, accusing them of putting “the fleeting politics of the moment” ahead of their oath to defend the US Constitution.
“In private, they complain about feeling trapped by President Trump’s poisonous grip on the Republican Party and yet refused to free themselves by voting to bar him from running for future office,” Menendez said in a statement after the vote.
“This is pure political cowardice and I fear their refusal to hold Donald Trump accountable will have lasting negative and even dangerous consequences for the future of our country.”
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Donald Trump, the former president of the United States, has welcomed his acquittal in a second impeachment trial, saying his political movement “to Make America Great Again has only just begun”.
ReplyDeleteThe US Senate voted 57-43 in favour of convicting the former president on Saturday, falling short of the two-thirds majority needed to convict him on a charge of inciting the mob that attacked the US Capitol on January 6, during the certification of Democrat Joe Biden’s election win.
In a statement shortly after the acquittal, Trump called the trial “yet another phase of the greatest witch hunt in the history of our nation”.
“Our historic, patriotic and beautiful movement to Make America Great Again has only just begun,” he said.
“In the months ahead, I have much to share with you, and I look forward to continuing our incredible journey together to achieve American greatness for all of our people,” he added.