4.10pm EST16:10 Trump lawyer appears to warn of more violence if impeachment trial continues
3.36pm EST15:36 Trump’s defense team warns against punishing political speech
3.07pm EST15:07 Trump’s legal team argues impeachment trial is unconstitutional
2.46pm EST14:46 Raskin provides emotional account of January 6 insurrection
1.25pm EST13:25 Impeachment managers play videos from Capitol insurrection
1.03pm EST13:03 Second impeachment trial of Donald Trump begins
12.51pm EST12:51 Community health centers to receive one million vaccine doses, White House says
4.44pm EST16:44
Some viewers of the impeachment trial wondered why David Schoen, one of Donald Trump’s defense lawyers, kept resting his hand on his head as he took a sip of water while making his opening argument.
Daniel Goldman, the lead counsel of the House inquiry during Trump’s first impeachment, explained it was because Schoen is an observant Jew and must cover his head and say a blessing when he drinks a sip of water.
Daniel Goldman (@danielsgoldman)
Mr. Schoen is an observant Jew who must cover his head when he takes a sip of water and quietly says a blessing. Since he is not wearing a kippah, he therefore covers his head with his hand.
February 9, 2021
4.35pm EST16:35
David Schoen, one of Donald Trump’s lawyers, argued that House Democrats inappropriately delayed the impeachment trial by holding back the article of impeachment.
But it was then-Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell who said he would not bring the chamber back early from recess to start the trial, despite Democratic leader Chuck Schumer’s requests for an emergency session to immediately begin the proceedings.
So it is not accurate to blame Democrats for the delayed start date of the impeachment trial.
4.26pm EST16:26
Congresswoman Ilhan Omar pushed back against the arguments presented by Donald Trump’s defense team in the impeachment trial.
Omar sent a tweet about the proceedings shortly after the defense team played a video showing Democrats, including Omar, calling for the impeachment of Trump as early as 2017.
“Let’s be clear, we might have all done and said things we regret, but only Trump and the #seditioncaucus words and actions have let to an insurrection of our nation’s Capital, death and bodily harm,” the Democratic congresswoman said. “Don’t let them confuse you.”
Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN)
Let’s be clear, we might have all done and said things we regret, but only Trump and the #seditioncaucus words and actions have let to an insurrection of our nation’s Capital, death and bodily harm.
Don’t let them confuse you.
February 9, 2021
4.21pm EST16:21
Lauren Aratani
Bruce Castor’s bizarre opening argument in defense of Donald Trump could be part of the team’s “deliberative strategy,” a Trump ally is telling reporters, including the New York Times’ Maggie Haberman and NBC’s Peter Alexander.
Peter Alexander (@PeterAlexander)
A Trump source, just now, describes Castor’s argument as a “very clear, deliberative strategy.”Says defense is “lowering the temperature… before dropping the hammer on the unconstitutional nature of this impeachment witch hunt.”
February 9, 2021
It seems that the defense team was trying to tamper emotions after the House’s impeachment managers appeared in front of the Senate. Castor was “lowering the temperature” before the team went on to “dropping the hammer on the unconstitutional nature of this impeachment witch hunt,” according to an anonymous Trump ally who spoke to Alexander.
It is unclear what part of Castor’s statement was part of this strategy given that he acknowledged moments ago on the Senate floor that the team “changed what we were going to do on account that we thought the House managers presentation was well done.” Perhaps the admission was part of the “deliberative strategy”?
4.13pm EST16:13
David Schoen criticized the House impeachment managers for playing “movies” to make their case for Donald Trump’s conviction.
The impeachment managers opened their arguments today by playing a video showing the violence and destruction at the Capitol on January 6.
Shortly after Schoen issued his criticism, he played his own video, showing Democrats calling for the impeachment of Trump as early as 2017.
Schoen’s video opened with a clip of Jamie Raskin, the lead impeachment manager, as menacing music played in the background.
4.10pm EST16:10
Trump lawyer appears to warn of more violence if impeachment trial continues
David Schoen, a member of Donald Trump’s legal team, accused Democrats of abusing the impeachment power to gain a political advantage.
The former president’s lawyer argued Democrats are pursuing impeachment because they are still mad about the results of the 2016 election. (The impeachment managers’ opening argument focused exclusively on the violent insurrection at the Capitol last month, which Trump incited.)
“I promise you that if these proceedings go forward, everyone will look bad,” Schoen said, warning that the trial would “open up new and bigger wounds across the nation”.
Schoen then appeared to suggest that the impeachment trial could spark another civil war, saying, “This trial will tear this country apart, perhaps like we have only seen once before in American history.”
Updated at 4.10pm EST
4.01pm EST16:01
As he concluded his opening comments, Bruce Castor also bizarrely seemed to suggest Donald Trump should be arrested if the allegations at the heart of the impeachment trial are true.
“A high crime is a felony, and a misdemeanor is a misdemeanor,” Castor said. “After he’s out of office, you go and arrest him. … The department of justice does know what to do with such people. And so far, I haven’t seen any activity in that direction.”
Aaron Rupar (@atrupar)
Castor winds down his very bizarre speech by daring the DOJ to arrest Trump pic.twitter.com/jmoxdIU6Pm
February 9, 2021
3.55pm EST15:55
Bruce Castor closed his opening comments by acknowledging that Donald Trump’s defense team was caught off guard by the strength of the House impeachment managers’ presentation.
The former president’s lawyer said the defense team reshuffled because they thought the managers’ presentation would focus only on the question of Senate jurisdiction rather than recounting the violence and destruction of the January 6 insurrection.
“We have counter-arguments to literally everything they have raised, and you will hear them later in the case,” Castor said.
And with that, he handed things over to another member of Trump’s defense team, David Schoen.
3.47pm EST15:47
Alan Dershowitz, who served as a member of Donald Trump’s defense team during his first impeachment trial, criticized Bruce Castor’s rambling opening presentation.
“There is no argument. I have no idea what he is doing,” Dershowitz told the conservative outlet Newsmax. “I have no idea why he’s saying what he’s saying.”
Newsmax (@newsmax)
‘There is no argument – I have no idea what he is doing,’ @AlanDersh on Trump’s defense lawyer Bruce Castor ‘talking nice’ to U.S. Senators – via Newsmax TV’s ‘American Agenda.’ https://t.co/VlT7z8drtO pic.twitter.com/7P7uVk5X19
February 9, 2021
Dershowitz said Castor was too focused on “talking nice” to senators rather than making a “constitutional argument” for why the impeachment trial should be dismissed.
“I have no idea what he’s doing. Maybe he’ll bring it home, but right now it doesn’t appear to be effective advocacy,” Dershowitz said. “Boy, it’s not the kind of argument I would have made. I’ll tell you that.”
3.36pm EST15:36
Trump’s defense team warns against punishing political speech
About 20 minutes into his speech, Bruce Castor addressed the January 6 insurrection, pointing to a First Amendment defense for Donald Trump inciting the violence.
“We can’t possibly be suggesting that we punish people for political speech in this country,” the former president’s lawyer told senators.
The impeachment managers preemptively addressed this argument in their final pre-trial brief, which they filed earlier today.
“The First Amendment does not immunize President Trump from impeachment or limit the Senate’s power to protect the Nation from an unfit leader,” the managers wrote in their brief.
They added, “And even assuming the First Amendment applied, it would certainly not protect President Trump’s speech on January 6, which incited lawless action.”
Updated at 3.36pm EST
3.28pm EST15:28
Bruce Castor, who is leading Donald Trump’s defense team, opened his presentation by praising senator as “patriots” and mentioning that he still gets lost in the Capitol sometimes.
Castor did not directly address the president’s actions on January 6 or argue against the constitutionality of the impeachment trial.
Reporters compared the former president’s lawyer to a college student who did not do the reading before class, joking that Castor would be fired by tweet if Trump still had access to his Twitter account.
Abby D. Phillip (@abbydphillip)
I have been in this government class before, where someone hasn’t done the reading, napped through the first half of class, gets called on and just riffs for 15 minutes.
February 9, 2021
James Hohmann (@jameshohmann)
Bruce Castor’s opening speech feels a little like this. pic.twitter.com/D2j5soQ6s8
February 9, 2021
Seung Min Kim (@seungminkim)
If Trump still had his Twitter account, he may Tweet-fire this lawyer on the spot.
February 9, 2021
3.17pm EST15:17
The beginning of Bruce Castor’s presentation seemed to be mostly him rambling, which did not escape the attention of those watching the impeachment trial.
Susan Glasser (@sbg1)
Yes. https://t.co/tOAiYJFRCH
February 9, 2021
Castor, who is leading Donald Trump’s defense team, spent several minutes explaining how senators are different than other Americans. It was very unclear how that issue relates to whether the impeachment trial is constitutional.
The contrast to House impeachment managers’ presentation, which started with a video showing the violence and destruction of the January 6 insurrection, was quite stark.
Dave Weigel (@daveweigel)
This is a “My Cousin Vinny”-level mismatch of opening statements so far
February 9, 2021
3.07pm EST15:07
Trump’s legal team argues impeachment trial is unconstitutional
The impeachment trial has now resumed, and Donald Trump’s legal team has started delivering its argument that the trial is unconstitutional.
Lawyer Bruce Castor opened his remarks by acknowledging the “outstanding presentation” offered by the impeachment managers.
Castor also emphasized that he and Trump’s other lawyers denounced the violence at the Capitol on January 6, saying they believed all the insurrectionists involved in the attack should be prosecuted.
