Trevor Noah
On Thursday, House impeachment managers closed their case against Donald Trump for inciting the Capitol insurrection on January 6, with more unpublished and disturbing images of the riot. The videos “make it quite obvious that Trump has stirred up troublemakers,” said Trevor Noah on The Daily Show.
“They were wearing Trump hats, carrying Trump flags, and they all just watched Trump speak and shouted ‘fight for Trump.’ Even that Blue’s Clues dog is like, ‘I need a challenge here, guys, we all know what that is, right?’ “
If a guy broke into the Capitol because he thought Trump said that, maybe you can blame him, but if an entire stadium of people misinterpreted him the same way, that shit is Trump. pic.twitter.com/RUsyKxK0hJ
– The Daily Show (@TheDailyShow) February 12, 2021
“I mean, if a guy broke into the Capitol because he thought you said that to him, maybe you could blame him,” Noah added. “But what if an entire stadium of people misinterpreted you in the same way? I don’t know, man, that shit is yours.
If there is a theme for the trial “in addition to Trump being super guilty,” Noah continued, “it’s Republican senators not caring that Trump is super guilty.” Throughout the week, Republican Party senators, including Rand Paul, Josh Hawley and Rick Scott, were seen hanging out of the proceedings – scribbling in their notebooks or reading about other topics as the House’s impeachment managers presented their evidence.
“These senators are a jury for the president’s trial, but instead they are acting like bored elementary students,” said Noah. “What do Democrats need to do to make this interesting for them? Bring one of those math teachers who raps everything? “
Stephen Colbert
On the Late Show, Stephen Colbert played clips of Congressman Jamie Raskin’s final argument for the prosecution, in which he addressed the Trump defense team directly: “In general, if a president incited a violent uprising against our government, that would be a serious crime and misdemeanor? “
“Dude, he really had to ask that question!” Colbert was delighted. “The bar was so low. And someone must catch him fast before any Maga brothers use him to beat a policeman. “
In all seriousness, Colbert added later, there was one thing that all of the House’s impeachment managers had in common during the trial: “they were not defending their own egos. They were clearly, deeply, sincerely, desperately trying to make any human connection as fellow citizens with the Republican senators in that gallery and convince them to put the country before the party. “
“So, doomed from the start,” he joked, while Senate Republicans “are doing exactly what they did on January 6: running away from what they helped create.”
Jimmy Kimmel
Watching the House’s case against Trump complete was “like the Empire Strikes Back,” said Jimmy Kimmel. “We already know how it ends, but we’ll watch it anyway.”
Democrats “could produce a video of Trump looking directly at the camera saying ‘I, Donald Trump, hereby incite this uprising of violence’, and most Republican senators would say, ‘But where is the proof? We saw no evidence, ‘”he added.
The conviction remains highly unlikely, Kimmel explained, as most Republican senators support the former president or are afraid to irritate his base to vote against him. “The thing is, if Americans cared as much about America as we did about Britney Spears, this would be a great place to live,” he said.
Most observers expect Republican Party senators to vote in favor of the former president, although Trump’s argument, according to Kimmel, is “basically, ‘Yes, maybe I shouted’ fire ‘in a crowded theater, but people running over were acting on their own. ‘”
Seth Meyers
And on Late Night, Seth Meyers focused on Marco Rubio, the former Republican senator from Florida, who in five years transformed from Trump’s vocal critic to a staunch supporter. Meyers showed a clip of Rubio this week, in which he called the impeachment a “waste of time” because he did not vaccinate people or give jobs.
“How many people are going to get superpowers with this impeachment trial? None, ”Meyers teased. “How many people are going to fall in love because of this impeachment trial? None. How many people will win the $ 1 million McDonald’s Monopoly grand prize by collecting all four railways of large or medium potato chips or McFlurries or apple pies? None.
“That’s not what impeachment is for. You should be able to do two or three or even, God forbid, four things at the same time, ”added Meyers seriously. “If you really want to help people, why not sign the Democrats’ Covid relief bill, or a $ 15 minimum wage?”
When Trump dismissed the pandemic or encouraged people to “stick some Tide to-go pens in their nose, why didn’t you say anything?” Meyers continued, with the answer in hand: “Because you are a boneless fraud.”