The Senate has voted 56 to 44 that the Senate impeachment trial of a former president, in this case Donald Trump, is constitutional and will proceed Wednesday (Feb. 10). Only six republicans supported the trial.
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A simple majority was needed to continue with the trial, rather than the two-thirds needed to convict, which seems unlikely given that 44 Republicans voted not to proceed with the trial at all.
That vote Tuesday (Feb. 9) came after about four hours of argument, sometimes impassioned and at other times fairly dry and lawyerly. That argument included dueling videos, one by House Democrats showing sometimes hard-to-watch footage of the Capitol insurrection at the heart of the trial, and the other by Trump lawyers with repeated calls for Trump's impeachment dating back years.
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The trial resumes at noon Wednesday with arguments on whether the President incited the Capitol insurrection that cost lives and property.
The House voted to impeach the President Jan. 13 for incitement of insurrection, a high crime and misdemeanor, after a crowd of his followers left a rally where he said the election had been stolen and stormed and vandalized the Capitol where the election results were being certified.
