Some thoughts, going into the second Impeachment trial of a president. Though Nixon didn’t actually make it to impeachment, that was pretty close, and so this is now the FOURTH impeachment effort of my lifetime. I’m just over 60 years old, a mere fourth of the nation’s time on this earth. That seems like a lot! And what it says to me is that I live in interesting times; if not the latter days of my republic, at least a tumultuous in our political lifetime.

The session will start in about 90 minutes, and thought my thoughts are muddled by the sheer number of issues involved, some things stand clear to me.

Trump ignored the rule of law, and was ready to do anything, ANYTHING, to secure another term.

Trump’s disregard for the rule of law meant there was no tactic out of bounds, as long as it secured the White House for him. I won’t say “secure the election” because I don’t think he cared about the vote, just the result. His calls to the election officials in Georgia and elsewhere shore this up.

I am uncertain whether Trump coordinated with the insurrectionists from the beginning; I’m more confident that his staff and perhaps Congressional staff were involved. I am certain that Trump and his team were very happy to ride the wave that the Proud Boys, self-styled Militia, the 3%ers, the white supremacist’s were generating. It was like a reality show for him: the more chaos and attention their tactics and their attack created, the better for Trump. Though it didn’t surprise me, it was none the less disturbing to learn that Trump DELIGHTED in the chaos at the Capitol. He delayed sending help because it was, literally, great for his ratings among his fans.

Liz Cheney, or some speech writer of hers, said it well: “The President of the United States summoned this mob, assembled the mob, and lit the flame of this attack. Everything that followed was his doing. None of this would have happened without the President. The President could have immediately and forcefully intervened to stop the violence. He did not. “

It’s this last one that really bites. There have been inept presidents, men (!) who were slow to act, or who dithered too long over details. This is different. He and his team were asked for help; they shouldn’t have even had to ask. Or beg, because that also seems to be part of this outrage.

If only, if ONLY Trump had merely said a few things that were taken wildly out of context by his supporters. If ONLY we could believe he is so stupid be couldn’t see where things were headed. If only his slow response was due to authentic administrative issues. But he didn’t, and he isn’t, and it wasn’t. He was complicit; the only question is the classic one: What did the president know, and when did he know it?

Whatever one might think about the particulars of Trump’s speech on the Ellipse on January 6th, the context is damning. He and his team ignored the groundswell of insurrectionists planning an assault on DC. He and his team failed to prepare the Capitol for the impending violence, and sent aid too late to prevent death and destruction. He and his team DELIGHTED in the chaos. And Trump’s actions and remarks afterwards made only the most formative of negative comments about the Insurrection. You know, when he wasn’t being totally inflammatory and getting kicked off Twitter.

He’s guilty, in my view, and his actions before and after the Insurrection damn him further.

But, of course, too many GOP members of Congress are making excuses for the president, most of which amount to “he’s already outta here, leave the man alone.”

But that’s no good. Legal scholars can make the arguments about why Trump should be convicted of impeachment after he has left office. The primary one seems to be “so he can’t hold office” again (or hold “public trust” or profit. What a great idea! Yeah, let’s do that!

But to my mind, the biggest reason is that we must, MUST, draw a line in the sand, say to ourselves, our citizens, our Republic and the world at large: these actions and goals were anti-Constitutional and a threat to the normal rule of law and elections, and those who cross that line IN THE FUTURE will be held to account, just like this asshole we have before us. Except, you know, nicer-like.

And that’s it. Trump won’t ever believe he did anything wrong, so any trial won’t produce remorse or a change in behavior. Trump’s die-hard supporters will never drop their support of him, so that’s not the point of a trial and a conviction. But Senators who stand up for the constitutional rule of our nation, and those who look on while this goes down, are saying “Trump went too far; anyone who follows that road goes too far, and here are the lines we must not cross.”

Some consequences involving orange jumpsuits wouldn’t be a bad idea either, but that’s not the point of an Impeachment trial. Beyond the particular effect on Trump – preventing him from holding office or (if I understand correctly) doing business with the government – the point is to say: This is Who We Are, This is What We Stand For, This is How We Operate Under Constitutional Law. And, This Is What We Do To Those Who Ignore It.

(I’m feeling vaguely German, or perhaps Colonial, with all those caps, but somehow the emphasis feel right.)

We’ll see how it goes. I have doubts that enough GOP Senators will follow their Oath and consider the evidence. But the evidence, and the proceedings, will be recorded officially, part of our Nation’s record, literally and figuratively.

The whole world is watching. I have my doubts, but also my hopes, that our nation will do the right thing.