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A second impeachment, a campaign finance boycott and a public shaming campaign are targeting Trump and his supporters seen to have incited the attempted insurrection.
IN MARCH 2019, AS Democrats newly in the House majority tallied up allegations of abuse of power, violating campaign finance laws and obstructing justice, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi balked at starting impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump.
"Impeachment is so divisive to the country that unless there's something so compelling and overwhelming and bipartisan, I don't think we should go down that path, because it divides the country. And he's just not worth it," Pelosi told The Washington Post, echoing her earlier comments that the best way to rid the country of Trump was to defeat him in 2020.
Less than two years later, and with little more than a week before the defeated Trump must leave office, Pelosi is calling for a historic, second impeachment of Trump. And this time, with the very fate of America's democracy and the lives and safety of the nation's elected officials under threat, the possible political fallout from what could be another divisive exercise took a back seat.
Trump is "deranged, unhinged and dangerous," Pelosi told CBS's "60 Minutes" on Sunday night. "He has done something so serious that there ought to be prosecution against him. Nothing is off the table."
This time, the House moved quickly, planning to introduce on Monday a single article of impeachment, accusing Trump of "incitement of insurrection." A vote is expected later in the week.
The initial shock over last Wednesday's attempted insurrection at the U.S. Capitol did not fade over the weekend, as videos of the riot showed that it was even more violent than it originally appeared. Horrifying footage emerged of a mob wearing pro-Trump gear and carrying U.S. flags brutally beating a police officer. Another showed that a Capitol Police officer put his own life at risk by goading insurrectionists to follow him, moving the mob away from the U.S. Senate chamber.
In her "60 Minutes" appearance, Pelosi recounted how her staff was huddled under a table during the attack on the Capitol, wondering if they would make it out safely. Numerous Republican members of Congress are facing calls for censure or resignation for their rhetoric: Rep. Mo Brooks of Alabama, for example, told Trump supporters at a rally Wednesday morning that it was time to start "taking down names and kicking ass."
Rep. Lauren Boebert, Colorado Republican, live-tweeted the news that Pelosi had been taken out of the House chamber during the riot. That morning, she had tweeted, "Today is 1776."
The backlash against Team Trump as well as members of Congress who voted to challenge the Electoral College vote last week intensified. Forbes magazine alerted private companies considering hiring former Trump administration employees that the establishment business magazine "will assume that everything your company or firm talks about is a lie."
Major companies – including Marriott International and Citigroup – announced they would not make campaign contributions to any of the 147 members of the House and Senate who voted to challenge the state-certified votes making Joe Biden the winner of the 2020 presidential election.
Cumulus Media, a network which employs several high-profile conservative radio personalities, told hosts they needed to back off of unfounded claims that the election was stolen from Trump or face termination.
The Lincoln Project, a group of Republicans who sought to defeat Trump in 2020, said it will launch a multimillion-dollar ad campaign targeting companies that do contribute to that GOP group, The Washington Post reported Monday.
The PGA voted Sunday to cancel its agreement to hold the 2022 PGA golf championship at Trump's Bedminster club. People identified in photos and videos as having participated in Wednesday's attack are being arrested and fired from their jobs.
Both Trump critics and loyalists find themselves in an uncomfortable box. The president's supporters know they cannot openly back the behavior of the rioters without further ostracism, but they also do not want to alienate that part of the Republican primary electorate – a plurality of 45%, according to a YouGov poll last week – who approve of the Capitol attack.
The default position has been to call for calm and "healing," putting the onus on President-elect Joe Biden to smooth things over. Lawmakers such as Sen. Marco Rubio, Florida Republican, have cast the attack as a "tragedy" and said impeachment would merely create more division.
First lady Melania Trump, in a statement Monday morning, declared herself "disappointed and disheartened" by the events that resulted in at least five deaths and urged people to "rise above what divides us." While Mrs. Trump condemned the violence, however, she cast herself as a victim as well.
"I find it shameful that surrounding these tragic events there has been salacious gossip, unwarranted personal attacks, and false misleading accusations on me – from people who are looking to be relevant and have an agenda. This time is solely about healing our country and its citizens. It should not be used for personal gain," the first lady wrote.
Her statement was available on Twitter, a social media platform that last week permanently banned her husband from posting tweets, citing the possibility he might incite more violence.
Democrats, meanwhile, are also in a wrenching bind. They do not want to hamstring Biden as he starts an ambitious agenda to get COVID-19 vaccines into the arms of Americans and rebuild the economy. An impeachment could further incite Trump supporters and divide the rest of the country as well.
But by doing nothing, many Democrats argue, would send a signal that a president could egg on violent insurrectionists – threatening the very lives of those in the line of succession – and get away with it.
Should the House indeed succeed in impeaching Trump this week, the Senate – which is not scheduled to return until Jan. 19 – is not expected to take up the trial phase while Trump is still in office. That has led some House Democrats to suggest the chamber wait to send the article of impeachment over to the Senate, which later this month will be controlled by Democrats.
"We are going to hold Donald Trump accountable for last week's assault on the Capitol," Rep. David Cicilline, Rhode Island Democrat leading the impeachment march, tweeted.
The Biden team, meanwhile, moved ahead with its transition, including details of the Jan. 20 inauguration. The theme, the transition announced Monday morning, is "America United."