This acquittal is not the end of the world. 6 weeks ago, impeachment wasn't even on the table [View all]
Yes, it's enormously frustrating that, once again, craven Republicans stepped in to save Trump from accountability for his actions.
But remember that this impeachment is a very short moment in time. Six weeks ago, it wasn't even on the radar. And once the impeachment started, no one thought he'd be convicted. And he wasn't - that's not a surprise. But Trump WAS impeached and a substantial bipartisan majority of Senators voted to convict him. This is historical and important and the Democrats stepped up and did the right thing and history will take heed of that.
But also note that, even if he had been convicted, the only penalty would have been to disqualify him from holding federal office.
And even if he HAD been disqualified, that wouldn't have made him go away. In fact, it would have been a badge of honor - he would have still been in our faces and probably would still threaten to run.
So we're pretty much where we were a few weeks ago. We now need to shift focus to holding him accountable in other, more substantive and sustainable ways. We need to support House and Senate hearings into Trump's wrongdoing and criminal investigations and prosecutions for his crimes.
Today was frustrating and disappointing. But it's not the end of anything - only the beginning.
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