Tag: Trump broke his oath of office

Chuck Todd accuses Trump’s defense team of ignoring ‘the real elephants in the room’ in the trial

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During Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial, his defense team has insisted that the former president never called for violence during his speech at the “Save America Rally” in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6 — that he never encouraged anything other than peaceful protest. But when NBC News’ Chuck Todd discussed the trial with his colleague, Lester Holt, on Friday, he stressed that such claims ignore the totality of what Trump said the day a mob violently attacked the U.S. Capitol Building.

Todd told Holt, “They are trying to isolate the Jan. 6 speech. They are trying to ignore everything else about it. They’re trying to ignore all the tweets around it.”

Another talking point from Trump’s defenders has been that Democrats have also used heated rhetoric at times. And Todd dismissed that argument as disingenuous “whataboutism.” Continue reading.

McConnell won’t reprise role as chief Trump defender

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Senate Republican sources say they do not expect Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to reprise his role as one of President Trump’s principal defenders in a future Senate impeachment trial.

A Republican official said McConnell has made it clear to his allies that he’s done defending Trump and that the Senate GOP leader hasn’t spoken to the president since December.

McConnell had given a speech sharply breaking with Trump over the election — which the GOP leader tellingly said had not been that close — moments before the Capitol was overtaken by a mob. Aides and police later had to help McConnell, 78, as he and other senators were evacuated. Continue reading.

Trump was ‘pleased’ by Capitol siege — until aides warned he has ‘legal exposure’: NYT reporter

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The New York Times’ Maggie Haberman has been reporting extensively on the January 6 siege of the U.S. Capitol Building and President Donald Trump’s response to it. Haberman discussed her reporting during a January 12 appearance on CNN’s “New Day,” telling hosts Alisyn Camerota and John Berman that Trump was initially “pleased” with what we he saw on television.

The Times reporter told Camerota and Berman that Trump “was engaging with aides while this was all going on. They were interrupting, telling him that he had to do something. And they were interrupting, telling him the Capitol was being overrun by his supporters. He was well aware of it, he was watching it. He was pleased because it was people fighting on his behalf. He was pleased because he liked the scene, he was pleased because it was delaying the certification of the electoral college vote….. He just didn’t want to do anything.”

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House Minority Leader McCarthy exploded at Trump for claiming ‘antifa’ was to blame for Capitol riot: report

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While Americans all over the United States watched in horror as angry Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol, President Donald Trump reportedly continues to place blame elsewhere. And when the president claimed antifa was to blame for the deadly rioted he, himself, incited, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) pushed back on Trump’s claim, Axios report. Now, details are emerging about the Republican lawmaker’s heated call with the president.

According to Axios, McCarthy spoke with Trump on Monday, Jan. 12, where he reportedly stood his ground and reminded the president that the 2020 election is “over.”

During the 30-minute call, Trump allegedly deflected and peddled conspiracy theories about the election and what transpired at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. As Trump continued his claims of widespread voter fraud, McCarthy is said to have grown “exasperated” with the president. Continue reading.

After US Capitol assault, a different cybersecurity threat emerges

Among so many things that are horrific about last week’s deadly attack on the Capitol building was the fact that it was planned for weeks. In the open. With that in mind, we are left wondering about the cybersecurity questions raised in the aftermath.

When Engadget asked a physical cybersecurity penetration tester what he’d do if assigned to “pentest” the Capitol building during the riot, the response wasn’t comforting. His excitement was palpable. “Oooh, so many cool attacks you could do,” he said, and began listing equipment he’d bring.

But hold on a second: before getting to the attacks, we need to have some real talk about who would do such a thing. It’s a question we’re all asking about many aspects of this unbelievably painful moment. Continue reading.

Six hours of paralysis: Inside Trump’s failure to act after a mob stormed the Capitol

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Hiding from the rioters in a secret location away from the Capitol, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) appealed to Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser. Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) phoned Ivanka Trump, the president’s daughter.

And Kellyanne Conway, a longtime Trump confidante and former White House senior adviser, called an aide who she knew was standing at the president’s side.

But as senators and House members trapped inside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday begged for immediate help during the siege, they struggled to get through to the president, who — safely ensconced in the West Wing — was too busy watching fiery TV images of the crisis unfolding around them to act or even bother to hear their pleas. Continue reading.

Statements were made: Key Republicans avoid blaming Trump supporters for mob attack

Refusal to say who perpetrated the attack feeds false narrative that left-wing groups were responsible

Many of the same Republican members of Congress who voted to reject the results of the presidential election have reacted to the Jan. 6 violent insurrection in a way that avoids blaming President Donald Trump’s supporters for their attack on the Capitol.

In statements, those lawmakers have used well-worn tactics, such as the passive voice, a focus on the acts instead of the actors and a vagueness that leaves a comment open to interpretation. That allows them to deflect from the reality that it was Republican supporters who attacked Capitol Police to occupy the Capitol for the first time since the War of 1812, and to conflate the mob with other protests over the summer.

Take Missouri Republican Sen. Josh Hawley, who led the charge Jan. 6 to try to reject the results of President-elect Joe Biden’s win in Pennsylvania, even though courts that examined Trump’s unfounded allegations of election fraud found no reason to question the outcome. Continue reading.

FBI report warned of ‘war’ at Capitol, contradicting claims there was no indication of looming violence

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A day before rioters stormed Congress, an FBI office in Virginia issued an explicit warning that extremists were preparing to travel to Washington to commit violence and “war,” according to an internal document reviewed by The Washington Post that contradicts a senior official’s declaration the bureau had no intelligence indicating anyone at last week’s demonstrations in support of President Trump planned to do harm.

A situational information report approved for release the day before the U.S. Capitol riot painted a dire portrait of dangerous plans, including individuals sharing a map of the complex’s tunnels, and possible rally points for would-be conspirators to meet in Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and South Carolina and head in groups to Washington.

“As of 5 January 2021, FBI Norfolk received information indicating calls for violence in response to ‘unlawful lockdowns’ to begin on 6 January 2021 in Washington, D.C.,” the document says. “An online thread discussed specific calls for violence to include stating ‘Be ready to fight. Congress needs to hear glass breaking, doors being kicked in, and blood from their BLM and Pantifa slave soldiers being spilled. Get violent. Stop calling this a march, or rally, or a protest. Go there ready for war. We get our President or we die. NOTHING else will achieve this goal.” Continue reading.

DFL Party Statement on Minnesota’s Republican Congressional Delegation Voting Against Impeachment

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – Today, Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party Chairman Ken Martin released the following statement on Minnesota’s Republican Representatives voting against the bipartisan impeachment of the President of the United States for inciting insurrection:

“At Donald Trump’s urging, a mob descended on the United States Capitol, murdered a police officer, and sought to overturn the results of a free and fair election through the use of violence. This violent, armed insurrection resulted in the death of six Americans. Today, Representatives Jim Hagedorn, Tom Emmer, Michelle Fischbach, and Pete Stauber refused to hold President Donald Trump accountable for betraying his oath of office and inciting an insurrection attempt against the United States government.

“It is deeply disturbing that Minnesota’s Republican congressional delegation chose their political party over their country, their careers over the Constitution, and a mob over the people of Minnesota. There is no offense more impeachable than sedition and treason against the United States government, and the Minnesota Republican delegation’s votes not to impeach have condoned this behavior which should be universally denounced. Hagedorn, Emmer, Fischbach, and Stauber failed to stand up for the rule of law and American democracy when it mattered most and the people of Minnesota will not forget that.”

House impeaches Trump for second time — with some GOP support

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House lawmakers on Wednesday impeached President Trump for his role in last week’s deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol, capping an extraordinary week of violence, apprehension and partisan brawling in Congress just as Washington cranks up security in preparation for Joe Biden’s inauguration, just a week away.

The vote was historic: It made Trump the first president in the country’s history to be impeached twice.

And unlike the first debate, this time the president’s Democratic critics had support across the aisle. At least 10 Republicans joined every voting Democrat to approve the single impeachment article, which accuses Trump of inciting violence against the same federal government he leads. Continue reading.