Congressman Jamie Raskin (D-MD) arrives to meet with the other impeachment managers in the House before walking through the US Capitol Roundabout to the Senate House on Monday, February 8, 2021 in Washington, DC.
Sarah Silbiger | Getty Images
Prosecutors of former President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial will present new evidence and show that he spent weeks laying the groundwork for the January 6 riot on Capitol Hill and that he also “stirred up even more” once the violence started, advisers said at Tuesday.
“The evidence for Trump’s guilt in this case is overwhelming,” the impeachment managers’ advisers told reporters hours before the impeachment trial began in the Senate.
Aides said it is possible that after hearing what they called a devastating case, “Republican senators decide to vote to condemn Trump and prevent him from assuming the presidency again.
“Once they see that this president has indeed incited a violent insurrection to retain power, I think it may very well be that reluctant senators change their minds and vote to condemn,” said aides.
But these advisers gave no details of this new evidence against Trump.
“Stay tuned,” they said.
For Trump to be sentenced, at least 17 Republican senators will have to join the 48 Senate Democrats and two independents to plead Trump guilty.
This seems unlikely, at least for now, because 45 Republicans previously voted in favor of the argument that an impeachment trial against a former president like Trump is prohibited by law.
Some of these senators said it did not necessarily mean they would vote to absolve Trump at the trial.
The advisers to the impeachment managers said they were confident in the strength of the case.
“The Chamber will establish at the trial that President Trump deserves condemnation and disqualification to occupy and enjoy any office of honor, trust or profit under the United States,” the advisers said.
They also stated that the presentation of the Chamber’s attorneys will be like an “accusation of violent crime”, because
Trump is accused of helping to unleash the violent invasion of Congressional corridors shortly after a rally in which he spoke near the White House, where he asked his supporters to help him in the “struggle” to block confirmation of Joe Biden’s victory as president.
Thousands of Trump supporters revolted around and in the Capitol complex on the heels of that demonstration, which interrupted a joint session of Congress that was formally signing Biden’s victory.
Five people died in connection with the chaos, including a Capitol police officer and a Trump supporter who was shot by a police officer while trying to climb a window near the Chamber of Deputies.
The riot caused senators and members of the House of Representatives to flee in search of security and hide for hours in safe places.
Aides who spoke to reporters on Tuesday morning said that “this is personal” for members of the impeachment team’s Chamber because they were among the targets of the riot.
“They are not taking it lightly,” said aides.