Friend,

Today marks the beginning of the Senate impeachment trial where President Donald Trump will be tried for his incitement of the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

It's been over a month since an angry mob breached the People's House. I haven't forgotten the horror and outright fear I felt that day — fear for my own safety and the safety of my colleagues and fear for the future of our democracy.

Through his lies, Trump tried to prevent the certification of an election and the peaceful transfer of power. His actions went against some foundational principles of our republic.

But here's the truth: in America, angry mobs don't choose our president. The voters choose our president. And once the building was secure again, my colleagues and I immediately got back to work and certified the election.

Now, President Joe Biden is our president. But in the wake of the violence we saw on January 6, there needs to be accountability.

It's on leaders in the Senate — regardless of party affiliation — to do the right thing. That means taking a stand for our democracy. It means listening to and respecting the will of the people. And it means holding a corrupt president accountable for his crimes against our government and the people he was supposed to serve.

History has its eyes on this moment. I am hopeful that historians will write that leaders worked to bring our country together — to do, as Lincoln stated in his second inaugural address, "the work we are in to bind up the nation's wounds."

It's an honor to represent you,

Derek