In a statement after his acquittal, Trump hinted that something was on the horizon. But there was little detail about what it was.
“In the coming months, I have a lot to share with you and I look forward to continuing our incredible journey together to achieve American greatness for all of our people. There was never anything like it! ”Said Trump.
For many Republicans, the uncertainty about Trump’s future is in parts distressing, provocative and paralyzing. The former president has pledged to help the Republican Party retake the House in next fall’s midterm elections, but he also wants revenge on 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach him in the lower house. It is presumed that he will reserve similar spirits for the seven Senate Republicans who voted for his conviction on Saturday.
Trump promised to pursue state electoral reforms after insisting that a second term was “stolen” from him. But in doing so, he threatens a massive schism in the Republican party, which is already deeply divided by its false accusations of electoral fraud.
Trump’s allies are not sure how much success he will see in any of these ventures, particularly in the wake of an emotional impeachment trial that may have deeply hurt his reputation.
“100% [the impeachment trial] it impacts Trump in a negative, not a positive way, ”said former Trump adviser Bryan Lanza, suggesting that the ex-president’s outspoken influence on the Republican Party base has already begun to wane.
“The world has gone beyond him and now that he doesn’t have Twitter, he is moving even faster,” said Lanza.
But others argue that Trump’s acquittal will only consolidate his position in the party and send a message that Trump – and Trumpism – is the dominant force in Republican politics.
“This will not change your chance for 2024,” said a former campaign advisor. “Your base will be encouraged and your detractors will hate you even more.”
Throughout Trump’s second impeachment trial, House managers painted the former president as a reckless leader whose promotion of conspiracy theories, propensity to use violent language and baseless allegations of electoral fraud sparked a crowd that left the U.S. Capitol ransacked and threatened to overthrow the country’s democratic governance system.
In the end, it was enough to convince seven Republican senators to condemn – well below the 17 required for a guilty verdict. But while Trump and his team may have claimed the resignation, they are not free.
Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) Voted to absolve Trump, citing his concerns about the constitutionality of a former president’s impeachment. Still, in a speech after his vote, he made clear his disdain for Trump’s behavior and his view that Trump should face the consequences for the horrific scene that unfolded on Capitol Hill.
“Trump is still responsible for everything he did while in office,” said McConnell. “He hasn’t escaped anything yet. We have a criminal justice system in this country. We have civil disputes. And ex-presidents are not immune from being held accountable by anyone ”.
Without legal protection against federal criminal prosecutions granted to incumbent presidents, Trump faces a web of investigations into his conduct in office and commercial practices beforehand. This week, Georgia prosecutors announced a new investigation into Trump’s countless attempts to reverse the results of the 2020 state elections, including during a threatening phone call on January 2 with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. The investigation could open the door to criminal charges against the former president by state and local officials.
Trump may also face criminal charges in Washington, DC, if the city’s attorney general, Karl Racine, decides to sue Trump for his alleged role in the Capitol riots. Racine was considering the action even before the Senate voted to absolve Trump on Saturday.
Trump framed his post-presidential legal exposure as remnants of the “biggest witch hunt in the history of our country” – a phrase he also used to describe the Senate impeachment trial on Saturday.
“It is a sad commentary on our times that a political party in America is given a free pass to denigrate the rule of law, defame law enforcement, encourage mobs, excuse rioters and turn justice into a tool of political revenge and persecute, blacklist, cancel and suppress all the people and views of those or those who disagree, ”said Trump.
It was a message that the Republican National Committee used in a fundraising message on Saturday, which sought to project the party’s unity even when Trump failed to secure the support of all Republicans in the Senate.
“ACHIEVED AT LEAST! The biggest political circus of ALL TIME is finally over and we want to send a message that the Republican Party is STRONGER THAN EVER ”, said the message.
This may seem like an illusion now. But maybe not quite. The day before the absolution vote, it was reported that Senator Lindsay Graham (RS.C.) would meet with Trump in the near future to discuss her role in the Republican Party and the future of the party.