What happens now

Two days after the Senate failed to convict Donald Trump of inciting an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced plans for Congress to establish an outside, independent commission, modeled on the commission established after 9/11, to investigate the attack. The announcement came several hours after four House Republicans sent a letter to Pelosi suggesting she may be responsible for the delay in the deployment of National Guard troops ahead of and during the insurrection. The letter did not mention Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who was still majority leader at the time and thus would have had a say in the Capitol's security posture as well. —NPR

• — "This sad chapter in our history has reminded us that democracy is fragile." President Biden reacted to the acquittal in a statement on Saturday night. "Even those opposed to the conviction, like Senate Minority Leader McConnell, believe Donald Trump was guilty of a 'disgraceful dereliction of duty' and 'practically and morally responsible for provoking' the violence unleashed on the Capitol," Biden said. "[Democracy] must always be defended," he continued. "Each of us has a duty and responsibility as Americans, and especially as leaders, to defend the truth and to defeat the lies." —The Guardian
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• — You got served. House Homeland Security Committee Chair Bennie Thompson, along with the NAACP, filed a federal lawsuit today accusing Trump, his attorney Rudy Giuliani, and two extremist groups whose members have been charged in the Capitol attack with illegally conspiring to intimidate and block Congress' certification of the election. Thompson alleges that Trump and Giuliani's false claims that the election was stolen fomented a raid that violated the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871, which bars violent interference in Congress' constitutional duties. —The Hill
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• — He didn't really say that...did he? Yes, apparently he did. Not only does Sen. Ron Johnson not believe that Trump incited an armed insurrection—he's questioning whether one occurred at all. Despite video footage and photos showing participants erecting gallows, deploying pepper spray strong enough to repel bears, carrying zip ties, hurling a fire extinguisher, using baseball bats to smash windows, and throwing flags like spears at police officers, Johnson went on the state's airwaves yesterday to say, "This didn't seem like an armed insurrection to me." —Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Bump: It's far from over for ex-president

"While he was president, Trump was shielded from criminal indictment and saw the Justice Department he ran intervene to try to derail the [E. Jean] Carroll lawsuit. He no longer has those protections. He's not likely to face any criminal charges related to the events of Jan. 6, which are at the heart of the impeachment trial, but he may come to appreciate the relatively low stakes the trial involved." —Philip Bump in The Washington Post

Philip Bump is a national correspondent for The Washington Post.

MORE: Graham's post-election call with Raffensperger will be scrutinized in Georgia probe, person familiar with inquiry says —The Washington Post

'We did not send him there to vote his conscience'

That was the response of one Pennsylvania Republican official to Sen. Pat Toomey's vote, along with six other Senate Republicans, to convict Donald Trump for inciting the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. He's not the only one. All seven have faced at least some backlash from their state parties, with some at risk of being censured. Most face no immediate political repercussions, however. Toomey has already said he's not running for re-election in 2022. But more importantly, as Sen. Lisa Murkowski said, "I cannot allow the significance of my vote to be devalued by whether or not I feel that this is helpful for my political ambitions." —Forbes

MORE: Adam Kinzinger's lonely mission —The New York Times

First departure from Biden White House

White House Deputy Press Sec. T.J. Ducklo resigned Saturday, a day after he was suspended for threatening a Politico journalist who sought to cover Ducklo's personal relationship with an Axios reporter. Ducklo reportedly tried to suppress the story by telling the journalist, "I will destroy you." In a statement, Ducklo said, "No words can express my regret, my embarrassment, and my disgust for my behavior," and he was "devastated to have embarrassed and disappointed my White House colleagues and President Biden." On Inauguration Day, Biden had warned his staff, "[If] I hear you treat another colleague with disrespect, talk down to someone, I will fire you on the spot." —USA Today

MORE: Biden's lawyers told Kamala Harris' niece Meena to stop using her aunt to boost her brand, report says —Insider

WaPo Ed Board: Time for the WHO to get tough

"The possibility that the virus originated in an animal species, and reached people via an intermediate host, presents a huge challenge to the disease detectives, and must also be pursued with equal attention. The WHO is not a regulatory agency, and is partially dependent on China's cooperation. But it must strive nonetheless to carry out the probe without interference from China's relentless political minders, who are more interested in protecting the party-state than in finding the truth." —The Washington Post

MORE: COVID conspiracy shows vast reach of Chinese disinformation —The Philadelphia Inquirer

Focus on the pandemic

The White House on Saturday called on Beijing to make available data from the earliest days of the coronavirus outbreak, saying it has "deep concerns" about the way the findings of the World Health Organization's COVID-19 report were communicated. Great Britain's foreign minister said on Sunday that the UK shares the U.S.'s concerns regarding the level of access given to the WHO's recent fact-finding mission to China. —Reuters

• — Stimulus status. President Biden is working this week to shift attention back to his $2 trillion COVID-19 relief package. On his first official trip as president, he'll take his case directly to the American people with a televised town hall in Milwaukee, Wis., tonight at 9pm ET. Biden is hoping to attract some Republican support for his proposal. —ABC News
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• — Cuomo's woes. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo admitted yesterday that his administration's lack of transparency about the scope of coronavirus-related deaths in the state's nursing homes was a mistake. He acknowledged that the state created a void "filled with skepticism, cynicism, and conspiracy theories," which furthered confusion. Cuomo stopped short of a full apology, however, and has denied a cover-up. —The New York Times
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• — Democracy vs. COVID-19. The strength of global democracy was tested by the pandemic in 2020—and the coronavirus mostly won. The Economist Intelligence Unit's Global Democracy Index fell last year by an average 0.07 points, the biggest drop since the annual ranking was first compiled in 2006. Government-imposed restrictions on individual freedoms and civil liberties were partly responsible for the decline in a majority of countries, regardless of how well they managed the pandemic. —GZERO Media

Kristol: Keep the faith for the tough work ahead

"Much political activity—much worthwhile political activity—the great sociologist Max Weber observed a century ago, is difficult: 'Politics is a strong and slow boring of hard boards.' This takes, Weber continued, 'both passion and perspective.' And that means people 'must arm themselves with that steadfastness of heart which can brave even the crumbling of all hopes. This is necessary right now, or else men will not be able to attain even that which is possible today.'" —William Kristol in The xxxxxx

William Kristol is a conservative commentator and the editor-at-large of The xxxxxx.

MORE: Support for third U.S. political party at high point —Gallup

It is absolutely clear that the Republican Party has given up the right to call itself the Party of Lincoln. It has and continues to embrace a racist ex-pseudopresident, QAnon, and white supremacy. It is now a party that is exclusive to fringe beliefs and lacks the intestinal fortitude to say what is truly best for the United States of America and back that up with actions. Instead they sleep, doodle, and play with maps of Asia, or put their feet on the desk in front, and take it nice and easy. But respect the will of the majority of their voters? Not in a million years.

I was a Republican for all of my 70 years on this planet, believing that responsible conservatives could lead us to an even greater and grander future, particularly for my children and grandchildren. It ain't gonna happen with the puppets and cowards who now populate the party. I saw via Reuters that a group of "rebels" are seriously considering launching a new center-right party. Count me in on that. The Republican Party as it now exists, if that is the appropriate word, will never gain control of either chamber or the presidency again. Good riddance to rotten tomatoes. —Steven B., Florida

If political parties were businesses, about now someone would be rushing in to fill the huge unmet market share vacated by progressives on the left and Trumpists on the ... whatever political persuasion they cover (certainly not conservatism). A vast number of Americans right now are left without a party. Let's see how the political market responds. —Paul G., Utah

The views expressed in "What's Your Take?" are submitted by readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff or the Stand Up Republic Foundation.