Democratic Party legislators and other public figures in the United States have reacted with indignation to the results of former President Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial, after the US Senate found Trump not guilty of “inciting” a deadly riot on Capitol Hill last month.
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.”
The US Senate voted to acquit former President Donald Trump by a vote of 57 to 43 on Saturday [US Senate TV/Handout via Reuters]
Seven Republicans did join the Democrats in voting in favour of convicting the former president, but that number was far short of the two-third majority required to find Trump guilty of inciting the insurrection at the US Capitol.
Shortly after Saturday’s verdict, President Joe Biden issued a statement noting that the number of Republicans who voted to convict Trump was a record.
“While the final vote did not lead to a conviction, the substance of the charge is not in dispute,” Biden said, adding, “This sad chapter in our history has reminded us that democracy is fragile. That it must always be defended. That we must be ever vigilant.”
‘Witch hunt’
Trump’s legal team had rejected Democrats’ effort to impeach the former president, calling the trial “ludicrous” and unconstitutional because Trump is no longer in office.
“Mr Trump is innocent of the charges against him,” said Trump lawyer Michael van der Veen in his closing arguments on Saturday afternoon. “The act of incitement never happened.”
In a statement after the vote, Trump – the only US president to ever be impeached twice – called the Senate trial “yet another phase of the greatest witch hunt in the history of our Country” and promised his Make America Great Again movement would continue.
Other Republican legislators, as well as Trump supporters in the US and abroad, welcomed the results of the impeachment vote.
NOT GUILTY. Now maybe it would be nice if the senators stopped putting on show trials for free air time and actually started working for the American people for a change.
“I was against the Senate taking jurisdiction in this trial from the start,” said Republican Senator Ted Cruz, who voted to acquit Trump and said the incitement charge “was merely a rushed act of partisan retribution”.
“NOT GUILTY. Now maybe it would be nice if the senators stopped putting on show trials for free air time and actually started working for the American people for a change,” Donald Trump Jr tweeted.
“Thank goodness the second attempt to impeach Trump is over,” right-wing British politician Nigel Farage also said on Twitter. “The Donald can now fight again.”
Bipartisan effort
But the House impeachment managers, who led the prosecution against Trump during the Senate trial, said their effort was a success despite the results.
“This was the most bipartisan presidential impeachment event in the history of the country,” House manager Jamie Raskin said during a news conference after the vote.
“We have a clear and convincing majority of members of Congress that the president actually incited violent insurrection against the Union and against the Congress,” he said.
Seven Republicans joined Democrats in voting to convict Trump, including Senator Ben Sasse, who said he had promised to “always vote [his] conscience even if it was against the partisan stream”.
“I cannot go back on my word and Congress cannot lower our standards on such a grave matter, simply because it is politically convenient,” Sasse said in a statement.
Some political observers criticised the Democratic Party, however, for failing to call witnesses in the trial after House impeachment managers indicated they wanted to compel witnesses earlier on Saturday.
Instead, a deal was reached between Democrats and Republicans in the Senate to enter a statement by Republican Representative Jaime Herrera Beutler detailing a conversation between Trump and House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy during the riot.
But Raskin said that “no number of witnesses” would have convinced enough Republicans to vote for impeachment.
“They were hinging it on a matter of law,” he said during the news conference, referring to a claim made by Republican lawmakers that Trump could not be impeached since he is not in office. That argument has been rejected by constitutional scholars.
Party divided
Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell voted against impeaching Trump. But moments later, he said on the Senate floor that, “there is no question, none, that President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day”.
McConnell justified his vote by saying Trump could not be impeached because he is no longer president.
But the Kentucky legislator blocked efforts to start the impeachment trial in January when Trump was still in the White House – a fact that drew widespread criticism from Democrats and other observers.
“It is so pathetic that Senator McConnell kept the Senate shut down so that the Senate could not receive the article of impeachment and has used that as his excuse for not voting to convict Donald Trump,” Democratic House Speak Nancy Pelosi said.
.@LeaderMcConnell: “There is no question, none, that President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day.” pic.twitter.com/CznzAu3B0S
“It is truly sad and dangerous that only 7 Republicans voted to convict a president who is promoting a Big Lie, conspiracy theories and violence, and is aggressively trying to destroy American democracy,” Senator Bernie Sanders tweeted.
Al Jazeera’s Andy Gallacher, reporting from West Palm Beach, Florida, said most Trump supporters have remained staunchly in the former president’s corner and were not swayed by any of the allegations presented in the US Senate trial against him.
Gallacher said a struggle is under way between establishment Republicans and pro-Trump Republicans over the party’s future.
“Donald Trump continues to cast a long and dark shadow over this party,” he reported.
“Mitch McConnell’s speech, as powerful as it was, doesn’t really put off the statement that this is Donald Trump’s Republican Party … It seems to belong to one man for now.”
Quebec legislature member Youri Chassin has announced he’s leaving the Coalition Avenir Québec government to sit as an Independent.
He announced the decision shortly after writing an open letter criticizing Premier François Legault’s government for abandoning its principles of smaller government.
In the letter published in Le Journal de Montréal and Le Journal de Québec, Chassin accused the party of falling back on what he called the old formula of throwing money at problems instead of looking to do things differently.
Chassin says public services are more fragile than ever, despite rising spending that pushed the province to a record $11-billion deficit projected in the last budget.
He is the second CAQ member to leave the party in a little more than one week, after economy and energy minister Pierre Fitzgibbon announced Sept. 4 he would leave because he lost motivation to do his job.
Chassin says he has no intention of joining another party and will instead sit as an Independent until the end of his term.
He has represented the Saint-Jérôme riding since the CAQ rose to power in 2018, but has not served in cabinet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MONTREAL – NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says he will not be taking advice from Pierre Poilievre after the Conservative leader challenged him to bring down government.
“I say directly to Pierre Poilievre: I’m not going to listen to you,” said Singh on Wednesday, accusing Poilievre of wanting to take away dental-care coverage from Canadians, among other things.
“I’m not going to listen to your advice. You want to destroy people’s lives, I want to build up a brighter future.”
Earlier in the day, Poilievre challenged Singh to commit to voting non-confidence in the government, saying his party will force a vote in the House of Commons “at the earliest possibly opportunity.”
“I’m asking Jagmeet Singh and the NDP to commit unequivocally before Monday’s byelections: will they vote non-confidence to bring down the costly coalition and trigger a carbon tax election, or will Jagmeet Singh sell out Canadians again?” Poilievre said.
“It’s put up or shut up time for the NDP.”
While Singh rejected the idea he would ever listen to Poilievre, he did not say how the NDP would vote on a non-confidence motion.
“I’ve said on any vote, we’re going to look at the vote and we’ll make our decision. I’m not going to say our decision ahead of time,” he said.
Singh’s top adviser said on Tuesday the NDP leader is not particularly eager to trigger an election, even as the Conservatives challenge him to do just that.
Anne McGrath, Singh’s principal secretary, says there will be more volatility in Parliament and the odds of an early election have risen.
“I don’t think he is anxious to launch one, or chomping at the bit to have one, but it can happen,” she said in an interview.
New Democrat MPs are in a second day of meetings in Montreal as they nail down a plan for how to navigate the minority Parliament this fall.
The caucus retreat comes one week after Singh announced the party has left the supply-and-confidence agreement with the governing Liberals.
It’s also taking place in the very city where New Democrats are hoping to pick up a seat on Monday, when voters go to the polls in Montreal’s LaSalle—Émard—Verdun. A second byelection is being held that day in the Winnipeg riding of Elmwood—Transcona, where the NDP is hoping to hold onto a seat the Conservatives are also vying for.
While New Democrats are seeking to distance themselves from the Liberals, they don’t appear ready to trigger a general election.
Singh signalled on Tuesday that he will have more to say Wednesday about the party’s strategy for the upcoming sitting.
He is hoping to convince Canadians that his party can defeat the federal Conservatives, who have been riding high in the polls over the last year.
Singh has attacked Poilievre as someone who would bring back Harper-style cuts to programs that Canadians rely on, including the national dental-care program that was part of the supply-and-confidence agreement.
The Canadian Press has asked Poilievre’s office whether the Conservative leader intends to keep the program in place, if he forms government after the next election.
With the return of Parliament just days away, the NDP is also keeping in mind how other parties will look to capitalize on the new makeup of the House of Commons.
The Bloc Québécois has already indicated that it’s written up a list of demands for the Liberals in exchange for support on votes.
The next federal election must take place by October 2025 at the latest.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante is defending her decision to turn off comments on her social media accounts — with an announcement on social media.
She posted screenshots to X this morning of vulgar names she’s been called on the platform, and says comments on her posts for months have been dominated by insults, to the point that she decided to block them.
Montreal’s Opposition leader and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association have criticized Plante for limiting freedom of expression by restricting comments on her X and Instagram accounts.
They say elected officials who use social media should be willing to hear from constituents on those platforms.
However, Plante says some people may believe there is a fundamental right to call someone offensive names and to normalize violence online, but she disagrees.
Her statement on X is closed to comments.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
