US Senate votes to keep with Trump impeachment
The US Senate has discovered that the impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump is constitutional, allowing full proceedings to begin with.
Mr Trump's defense staff argued that he cannot deal with trial after leaving the White House.
But a 56-44 majority voted and only continuing, with a small number of Republicans backing the measure.
Mr Trump is accused of "inciting insurrection" when Congress was stormed previous month.
Thousands gathered to get false claims that widespread electoral fraud denied Mr Trump victory in the US presidential election.
Democrats prosecuting the circumstance opened Tuesday's proceedings by showing a training video montage of Mr Trump's 6 January speech and the deadly rioting by a few of his supporters.
"That's a huge crime and misdemeanor," Representative Jamie Raskin of Maryland said of the footage. "In the event that's no impeachable offence, then there is no such thing."
Lawyers for the ex - president argued it was unconstitutional to put a ex - president through the procedure in all and accused Democrats of being politically motivated.
The 56-44 split means six Republicans joined Democrats in voting to just do it with the trial.
Although this shows plenty of bipartisanship, this final result implies loyalty toward the former president in his party remains to be high enough in order to avoid a conviction.
A two-thirds majority must convict Mr Trump in the evenly split 100-seat Senate.
If convicted Mr Trump could possibly be barred from holding business office again.
Proceedings opened with impeachment managers - the Democrats tasked with leading the prosecution - arguing their tries were legitimate.
In the 10-minute video found in their display, Mr Trump was demonstrated telling his supporters to "deal with like hell" before they stormed the US Capitol in violence that led to five deaths - including a police officer.
Rep Raskin was brought to tears as he recounted dread for his private family's safety through the riot after he was first separated from his viewing daughter.
"This cannot be the continuing future of America," he told senators, who become jurors for impeachment.
"We cannot possess presidents inciting and mobilizing mob violence against our government and our institutions because they won't accept the will of the persons under the Constitution of the United States."
He argued there may be zero "January exception" to impeaching outgoing officials without risking a dangerous precedent.
Attorneys for Mr Trump then took the stand to outline their arguments with detailed problems and allegations about due method and the constitutionality of proceedings.
Former Pennsylvania prosecutor Bruce Castor opened up the security with a meandering display that was met with a critical reception by even allies of Mr Trump.
A second attorney, David Schoen, was more pointed. He confirmed videos dating back again to 2017 as evidence of what he labelled as an "insatiable lust for impeachment" among Democratic lawmakers.
"What they really want to accomplish here in the brand of the Constitution is normally to bar Donald Trump from ever before running for political business office again, but this is an affront to the Constitution regardless of who they target today," he told senators.
Republican Senator Costs Cassidy, among the 6 to vote with Democrats, said after that the House prosecution had "manufactured a compelling, cogent circumstance and the president's crew did not".
Widespread reports in US media advise Mr Trump expressed anger in his attorneys' performance while watching on television set from Florida.
