Former US President Donald Trump was saved yet again by his Republican supporters in his second impeachment trial.
WASHINGTON – FORMER US President Donald Trump was once again acquitted in his second impeachment case with a little help from his Republican friends at the US Senate.
This, after his fellow Republicans blocked his conviction over his alleged role in the deadly assault by his supporters on the US Capitol last January 6.
The Senate’s vote of 57-43 fell short of the two-thirds majority needed to convict Trump on a charge of inciting insurrection after a five-day trial.
In the vote, seven of the 50 Senate Republicans joined the chamber's unified Democrats in favoring conviction.
Trump left office on Jan. 20, so impeachment could not be used to remove him from power.
Democrats wanted to secure a conviction to hold him responsible for a siege that left five people including a police officer dead and to set the stage for a vote to bar him from ever serving in public office again.
Trump's attorneys argued that his words at the rally were protected by his constitutional right to free speech and said he was not given due process in the proceedings. (BR)