Democrat House managers prosecuting he impeachment case against 74-year-old President Donald Trump played never-before-seen disturbing images inside the Capitol riot and mob scene, with angry protesters looking to abduct or maim House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and former Vice President Mike Pence. Gruesome video captured utter bedlam with a Capitol Hill police officers screaming for his life, pinned against a wall by the angry mob. Del. Stacey Plaskett (D-Vir. Isle.) said the raging mob threatened to kill elected officials. “They were talking about assassinating the vice president of the United Sates. During the course of the attack, the vice president never left the Capitol, remained locked down with his family—with his family—inside the building. Remember that as you think about these images and the sounds of the attack,” Plaskett told U.S. Senators.
No one doubts the horrendous runaway mob that devoured the Capitol like Godzilla, but House managers must show that Trump instructed his audience to storm the Capitol and vandalize government property. Everyone knows that the Trump held strong beliefs that the Nov. 8, 2020 election was stolen from him, something he conveyed to his million-person-strong audience Jan. 6. Plaskett pointed out that Trump told the crowd the Pence could reverse the Electoral College vote, declaring the national vote null-and-void. Trump knew that Pence’s role was purely ceremonial in accepting the state’s Electoral College tabulations. Yet Trump informed his audience that Pence had the power to reverse the Electoral College vote. “Vice President Pence was threatened with death by the president’s supporters because he rejected President Trump’s demand that the overturn the election,” Plaskett said.
Plaskett and other House managers demonstrated for all to see the horrific mob scene that threatened the lives of elected officials and government property. If they’re making a case that the Jan. 6 riot and mob scene shocked the world and threatened the lives of elected officials, then House Democrats have made their case. “Nancy, where are you?” Plaskett showed the mob asking. “The vice president, the speaker of the house the first and second in line to the presidency, were performing their constitutional duties, president over the election certification. And they were in danger, because President Trump put his own desires—his own need for power—over his duty to the Constitution and our democratic process,” Plaskett said. “President Trump put a target on their back and his mob broke into the capitol to hunt them down,” saying Trump gave the orders to kill Pence and Pelosi.
Plaskett of course has no evidence that Trump participated in the advance planning of the Jan. 6 riot and mob scene or, for that matter, told his Jan. 6 or any other audience to track down and kill Pence and Pelosi. While Plaskett’s arguments are not fact-based, it certainly exposed the unthinkable horrors of Jan. 6. But Plaskett’s was supposed to prove that Trump incited his one-million-strong audience to storm the Capitol and vandalized government property. Plaskett and House managers have no evidence other that interpreting Trump’s Jan. 6 words or past Tweets to conclude that he actively, knowingly and deliberately participated in what looks like a well-planned riot and mob scene. House managers haven’t begun to make the case that the lawbreakers came e equipped for an “insurrection,” rebellion or revolt to topple the U.S. government, something specified in the article of impeachment.
House managers are running and effective PR campaign against Trump, designed to appeal to the Senate’s horde mentality, hoping to anger enough GOP senators to vote to convict Trump. But with the flawed article of impeachment, namely, “incitement of insurrection,” the House set the bar too high for conviction. Even if the House case doesn’t rise to the “beyond-a-reasonable doubt” standard, it’s going to be difficult for fair-minded Senators to convict Trump based on excruciating video, showing an angry mob shouting “death to Pence” or “death to Pelosi.” “They’re throwing metal poles at us,” one Capitol police officer said. A 911 dispatch, “13:49 hours, Declaring it a riot,” read another post. No Capitol Hill or D.C. police referred to the mob scene as an “insurrection,” a creation of House Democrats to make the Jan. 6 riot an impeachable offense against Trump.
House Democrats have made a convincing case that a repugnant riot and mob scene occurred at the Capitol Jan 6 that offended the sensibilities of any patriotic American. Plaskett did not show evidence that Trump deliberately, with advance knowledge, participated in the planning or ordered his supporters to break the law and threaten the lives of elected officials. “President Trump put a target on their [Pence and Pelosi] back and his mob broke into the capitol to hunt them down,” Plaskett said, without a shred of evidence. Most GOP senators, no matter how much they deplored Jan..6, are not going to convict Trump unless House managers can show actual evidence that Trump ordered or participated in the planning of the Jan. 6 riot and mob scene. Forget about proving that the riot and the mob scene was an “insurrection,” rebellion or revolt designed to overthrow the U.S. government.
