Dear MoveOn member,
Donald Trump's impeachment trial for inciting the deadly siege of the Capitol begins on Tuesday, and before the media circus begins, we wanted to let you know what to expect and what MoveOn is preparing to do to demand that the Senate convict Trump and bar him from ever running for public office again for his role in inciting a violent, murderous insurrection.
First and foremost, unlike Trump's first impeachment, Democrats now control the Senate, which means Mitch McConnell and Trump's other GOP lackeys will not be able to rush through a vote without a real trial.
And the case is as clear as can be. As the House impeachment managers have laid out, Trump spent months spreading lies about the election being stolen, repeatedly asked his supporters to come to D.C. on January 6, and then called for them to march on the Capitol and "fight like hell" to overturn the election.1
And then they did just that.
Trump's own lawyers have no defense against those facts, and so instead they are making the absurd claims that Trump was exercising his First Amendment rights to claim that the election was stolen and therefore cannot be held accountable.2
Trump's team is clearly setting up a ploy to turn the trial into an opportunity to promote conspiracy theories, and they're hoping to continue to wield Trump's control of the party to keep Republicans from voting to convict him.
But we won't let them get away with it.
MoveOn is ready with a huge campaign, including running mobile billboards around D.C. and in multiple states with Republican senators, demanding that they hold Trump accountable for his actions that led to the deaths of five people or accept that they too are responsible for condoning and enabling this murderous violence.
We have a real shot at finally putting an end to the death grip that Trump has on our politics and in doing so put white supremacist violence on trial and expose the complicity of fellow Republicans. But we need your help to do it, John. Will you chip in $5 a month to help MoveOn have the funds to fuel our efforts to first ensure that Trump is convicted and then demand that his seditionist cronies in Congress are held accountable as well?
No, I'm sorry, I can't make a monthly donation.
Many Republicans, especially those who helped incite the riot like Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley, are working overtime to try to sweep the events of January 6 under the rug, but as Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez recently pointed out while recounting her harrowing memories from that day, diminishing the realities of that trauma and attempting to get away without consequences are the tactics of an abuser—one who will just try to get away with it again.3
Five people died on January 6, including a Capitol Police officer whom the white supremacist mob allegedly beat to death with a fire extinguisher.4
At least 140 other law enforcement officials were injured—many beaten with bats, wrenches, metal bars, and even the pole from an American flag.5
The insurrection mob was highly organized, with many members in tactical gear and carrying handcuffs, ready to take hostages or even assassinate members of Congress.6
A total of 370 congressional aides have signed onto a letter calling for Trump's conviction and recounting how they hid for hours under desks or attempted to flee for their lives.7
These are the stark, brutal details of the attack that Trump spurred on. These are the actions of people whom, while the siege was ongoing, Trump called "very special" and said that he loved.
The horrific events of January 6 cannot be swept under the rug. Trump must be convicted, and the Republicans like Ted Cruz, Josh Hawley, Marjorie Taylor Greene, and Lauren Boebert, whose actions and rhetoric helped propel it forward, must be removed from the halls of Congress.
MoveOn helped lead the fight during Trump's last impeachment, and we are ready to do it again. But we need you to stand with us and ensure that not only Trump is held accountable but that the fight continues to demand that his fellow seditionists in Congress are removed as well. Will you chip in $5 a month to help make it happen?
No, I'm sorry, I can't make a monthly donation.
Thanks for all you do.
–David, Sandra, Melissa, Cheryl, and the rest of the team
Sources:
1. "What Trump said before his supporters stormed the Capitol, annotated," The Washington Post, January 11, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/149843?t=6&akid=289527%2E40999114%2E6E9Foy
2. "Trump lawyers call impeachment trial unconstitutional in laying out defense," The Hill, February 2, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/149844?t=8&akid=289527%2E40999114%2E6E9Foy
3. "Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Blasts Republicans For Suggesting Democrats Should Just Get Over Violent Capitol Attack," Vanity Fair, February 2, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/149845?t=10&akid=289527%2E40999114%2E6E9Foy
4. "Police union says 140 officers injured in Capitol riot," The Washington Post, January 27, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/149761?t=12&akid=289527%2E40999114%2E6E9Foy
5. Ibid.
6. "Veteran at Capitol with zip-tie handcuffs during riot aimed 'to take hostages': Prosecutor," KTLA, January 14, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/149841?t=14&akid=289527%2E40999114%2E6E9Foy
7. "'Attack On Our Workplace': 370 Congressional Aides Sign Onto Letter Urging Trump Conviction," Talking Points Memo, February 3, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/149846?t=16&akid=289527%2E40999114%2E6E9Foy
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