[Old School Hound]

Will the second time around result in conviction? There was no chance in hell that President Pumpkin was going to be convicted the first time, but I'm not as sure this time around.  

My bottom line on this is that if Mitch wants him exorcised from the party and he thinks a Trump conviction is what's best for himself, he will get the votes he needs to convict. Wouldn't surprise me if Mitch and Chuck are planning Donald's demise as we speak. That's how ole Mitch rolls. He probably feels that Donald cost him Majority Leader and is frothing at his old turtle mouth to get even. Just my thoughts...   What say you???

The GOP did better than expected in the Senate races. They probably did well enough to maintain control of the Senate had the Michigan election not been rigged.

McConnell and the Republican establishment never wanted Trump as their nominee. It was Jeb's turn to run and the schedule and rules of the primaries and caucuses were fixed to give Bush an easy road. When Trump blew Jeb's campaign out of the water, it left more conservative candidates battling it out on his right and allowed Trump to basically run as the moderate in the lane that he cleared of the favorite. That is why McConnell hates Trump.

There is absolutely no evidence that Trump incited a riot. If there was, then video clips would have been run in an endless loop of him calling for supporters to storm into the Capitol. There is strong evidence of some pre-planning by other groups to break into the building but nothing that points to Trump's involvement in planning or directing the mob. Because his time in office was so short, there was no investigation conducted and no opportunity given to Trump to defend himself in the House impeachment process.

I believe that it is likely that the Senate will vote to convict because our federal government is corrupt to the core and when evidence is not required for a conviction, none of us are safe.

The Republican and Democrat parties fear a Trump campaign in 2024 worse than anything else. All of us should really ask ourselves, if the federal government is willing to engage in such a vendetta against a 74 year old former president, what would they be willing to do to an average citizen who presents a constitutional threat to their monopoly on power? Will anybody that is not beholden to one of the two major parties ever again be able to mount a serious national campaign?

No doubt Mitch's disdain for Trump didn't just begin a few weeks ago.  As you said, the GOP establishment never, EVER, wanted Trump, much in the way that Schumer and the Dems  didn't want anything to do with the crusty old  Vermonter named Bernie.   Jeb was next in line  for the GOP, just as Clinton and then Biden was next in line for the Democrats. That's how it rolls in establishment politics. Jeb and Hillary had more in common than their families being in love with one another. Both ran horrible campaigns and both were about as charismatic as a plate of asparagus. 


Will there ever be anyone that will be able to make a serious run at the Presidency who isn't sucking from the teats of the party bosses?  I honestly don't know. I didn't think it could happen the last time. I guess it was just a confluence of a lot of factors and a lot of anger that made it possible. I guess my mantra now would be "never say never."  Hell, a bodybuilder and a professional wrestler became governors of Cali and Minnesota, respectively. Of course, a governorship is not quite like a national campaign. So, I don't have a good answer to your question, Mr Gibson, but it's one I think I will ponder on some more.