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MelissaB

More than 30 lawmakers asking Capitol security officials for details of suspicious visits on 5th

(Politico) More than 30 House Democrats are demanding information from Capitol security officials about "suspicious" visitors at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 5 — a day before violent insurrectionists swarmed the building — that would only have been permitted entry by a member of Congress or a staffer. "Many of the Members who signed this letter ... witnessed an extremely high number of outside groups in the complex on Tuesday, January 5,” wrote the lawmakers, led by Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.), in a letter to the acting House and Senate sergeants-at-arms, as well as the acting head of the Capitol Police.

JHB

Thursday TOONs

Nevilledog

Trump has instructed aides not to pay Giuliani's legal fees

(Washington Post) Though Trump has been exceptionally furious with Vice President Pence, his relationship with lawyer Rudolph W. Giuliani, one of his most steadfast defenders, is also fracturing, according to people with knowledge of the dynamics between the men. Trump has instructed aides not to pay Giuliani’s legal fees, two officials said, and has demanded that he personally approve any reimbursements for the expenses Giuliani incurred while traveling on the president’s behalf to challenge election results in key states.

Zorro

Trump's Second Impeachment Was the Usual Freak Show for House Republicans

(Michael Tomasky/Daily Beast) After four-plus years of praising Donald Trump’s “exquisite” leadership; four-plus years of waving away lines like the one about finding the Second Amendment solution for Hillary Clinton by saying he was just joking; and lately, after nine weeks of mostly being accomplices to Trump’s insane claims about election fraud; after Trump has torn the country in two and bullied local Republicans trying to do their jobs and instigated a riot that sought to kill his own vice president and did kill a police officer, exactly 10 members of the Republican Party out of 207 voting in the House of Representatives went on record as being willing to impeach Trump.

question everything

Trump Impeachment Deepens GOP Divide

(Wall Street Journal) The Capitol riot and the impeachment of President Trump have divided the GOP from the top down, with the party’s two congressional leaders, state party officials and longtime donors taking different stances on punishing the president as his term ends.

Intraparty divisions are showing up in frays over whether to impeach Mr. Trump and how to defend him; over whether Republicans are disqualified from leadership roles if they back impeachment; and even over whether to abide by new regulations to go through magnetometers before entering the House chamber, a restriction imposed to ensure those entering aren’t carrying guns or other prohibited items.

Gothmog

Pres.-elect Biden releases statement on impeachment of Pres. Trump:

(MSNBC) Pres.-elect Biden releases statement on impeachment of Pres. Trump: "I hope that the Senate leadership will find a way to deal with their Constitutional responsibilities on impeachment while also working on the other urgent business of this nation."

Nevilledog

"This is the strongest and most bipartisan repudiation of a president by the House."

(Jonathan Allen) 10 GOP votes for impeachment constitutes the highest number from the president’s own party ever, and [232] overall votes is the highest number in history. In other words, this is the strongest and most bipartisan repudiation of a president by the House.

BumRushDaShow

In bipartisan rebuke, House members vote to impeach Trump an unprecedented second time

(Washington Post) The House voted Wednesday to impeach President Trump an unprecedented second time, on a charge of “inciting violence” against the U.S. government. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) left open the possibility of voting to convict at a trial, which would occur after Trump leaves office next week.

During debate on the House floor, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said Trump “bears responsibility” for last week’s violent takeover of the Capitol but argued against impeachment so close to the end of his term. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) called Trump “a clear and present danger” and said “he must go.”

Donkees

Rep. Steny Hoyer gives Democrats' closing argument in Trump impeachment

DonViejo

Trump's actions in last days as President increase his legal jeopardy

(CNN) President Donald Trump's actions during his final days in office have significantly increased his exposure to potential criminal prosecution, lawyers say, complicating his life after the White House. Over five days last week -- beginning with a phone call to the Georgia Secretary of State directing him to "find" votes to overturn the election to encouraging the pro-Trump crowd to "show strength" in their march to the Capitol -- lawyers say the President has put himself under the microscope of state and federal prosecutors.

"There are potential state and federal crimes that he can be prosecuted for just for the things he's done this past week and what's troubling for him is he won't have the immunity from prosecution that DOJ say says a sitting president has as of next Wednesday," said Harry Sandick, a former federal prosecutor.