Watch Day 3 of Trump's Senate impeachment trial condensed to 3, 4 or 14 minutes

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published 12 February 2021

The Democratic House impeachment managers rested their case Thursday that former President Donald Trump incited an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, telling the Senate jurors that a failure to hold Trump accountable will present a clear and ongoing danger to the U.S. and its democratic system of governance. The siege has already damaged the U.S. in the world, they argued, and letting Trump escape with no punishment would make that worse.

The impeachment managers summarized the evidence they have presented, saying it clearly shows that Trump primed his supporters for the attack over several months, urged them to gather in Washington then sent them to "stop the steal" at the Capitol, sat on his hands while violence raged, and has shown no remorse for his actions and inaction. Acquittal will invite a future president to try Trump's power grab again, they argued. "I'm not afraid Donald Trump is going to run again," Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) said. "I'm afraid he's going to run again and lose. Because he can do this again."

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Trump's lawyers present their defense on Friday, and they say they intend to complete their rebuttal in one day, leaving open the possibility of a final verdict as soon as Saturday. "There is broad agreement among Republicans as well as Trump's team to end the impeachment trial as early as possible, given the beating they're taking from the media and the strength of the Democrats' presentation," Axios reports. And they have "begun feeding the notion that the trial will wrap on Saturday to reporters 'in an effort to speed things along,' a senior congressional aide told Axios."

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.