What's the point of Trump's second impeachment trial?

Trump will likely be acquitted. But there's still merit in the impeachment process.

Donald Trump.
(Image credit: Illustrated | Getty Images, iStock)

Donald Trump's second — and hopefully final — impeachment trial begins this week. Barring some unexpected development, we already know how it will end: The former president will be acquitted on the single charge of inciting the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection that left five people dead. There just aren't 67 votes in the 100-member Senate to sustain a conviction.

"It's not a question of how the trial ends, it's a question of when it ends," Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said Sunday on CBS. "Republicans are going to view this as an unconstitutional exercise, and the only question is, will they call witnesses, how long does the trial take? But the outcome is really not in doubt."

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Joel Mathis, The Week US

Joel Mathis is a freelance writer who has spent nine years as a syndicated columnist, co-writing the RedBlueAmerica column as the liberal half of a point-counterpoint duo. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic, The Kansas City Star and Heatmap News. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.