USA TODAY International Edition
Senate’s attention drifts between moments of drama
The Senate chamber went quiet Wednesday as the first pieces of never- before- seen video footage were shown on the second day of the impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump.
All turned their heads, almost in one motion, as the first radio transmissions and video footage played loudly on a pair of TVs in the chamber. Nearly every senator sat attentively, and some, including Sen. Cory Booker, D- N. J., readjusted their chairs to get a better view. Several senators in the back row of the chamber, including Democrat Mark Warner of Virginia, stood for several minutes to see the screens.
House impeachment managers, who are acting as
prosecutors in the trial, played video of rioters brawling with police outside the Capitol, smashing windows to climb inside and rampaging through the halls with bats and poles, saying they were looking for Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
But by Thursday, the tone of the chamber had turned.
Several Republican senators seemed less engaged than in the previous two days. As impeachment manager Rep. David Cicilline, D- R. I., spoke about the trauma faced by congressional staffers, more than a dozen GOP senators opted to view the trial from a room beside the Senate chamber rather than inside.
Senators tapped their feet on the ground, and only a few Republicans, including Bill Cassidy and Mike Lee, were taking notes. Tom Cotton, R- Ark., flipped a stack of papers back and forth, reading through his materials rather than watching Cicilline. Rick Scott, RFla., had a blank map of Asia on his desk and was writing on it.
While some senators seemed to be losing interest at times, their attention returned at a few key moments, including when managers played video of rioters screaming “fight for Trump.” Sen. Mitt Romney, R- Utah, looked pensive as video of a rioter saying “we were invited here” played.
Wednesday’s previously unseen footage without question shook several senators.
Video showed gallows built outside the Capitol as rioters chanted “Hang Mike Pence” and “Bring out Pence.” As they swarmed throughout the building, rioters shouted that they were looking for Pelosi, calling her “crazy Nancy.”
The impeachment managers also showed security footage of staffers rushing to safety and locking themselves in rooms just minutes before rioters entered Pelosi’s offices.
Stacey Plaskett, a House impeachment manager and Democratic delegate from the Virgin Islands, played audio from one of Pelosi’s aides pleading in a whisper for help in a phone call after staff members barricaded themselves in a conference room.
“They’re pounding on the doors trying to find her,” the staffer whispered into the phone.
Senators mostly remained motionless. Some jotted notes, others leaned in toward the screens, and many whispered to one another.
Susan Collins, R- Maine, held her head between her hands several times as the clips played. She at times took notes. Kyrsten Sinema, D- Ariz., shook her head several times. During one clip of rioters banging on the Capitol doors, she held her hands on her stomach and to her chest for several moments, appearing to take a deep breath.
Raphael Warnock, D- Ga., who was sworn in after the attack, stared at the screen even when it turned black after several clips played. He bowed his head for several moments. Tammy Duckworth, D- Ill., crossed her arms and shook her head at footage of a man who stormed Pelosi’s office.
But not everyone was convinced. After Wednesday had wrapped up, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R- S. C., tweeted: “The ‘ Not Guilty’ vote is growing after today. I think most Republicans found the presentation by the House Managers offensive and absurd.”
Scott, the Republican from Florida, called the trial a “waste of time,” saying that he was “disgusted” by what happened Jan. 6 but that Trump never said rioters should break into the Capitol and had asked people to be peaceful.
As video played Wednesday, Mike Rounds, R- S. D., pointed to the screen as impeachment managers played a clip showing Pence being evacuated from the chamber. Rounds whispered to several senators seated nearby.
James Lankford, R- Okla., who got emotional at one point while the footage aired, said seeing the videos brought back the memories of that day. He said it wasn’t a particular clip or moment that led to him getting upset but a person’s escape from the building when it was being attacked.
“There’s a lot of emotion. It’s tough to be able to walk through that. That was a horrible day for the entire country.” Lankford said he talked with his seatmate, Steve Daines, R- Mont., about the footage recounting one person’s escape, someone Lankford said he’s close to but wouldn’t name.
“I was recounting the story to Steve of their particular escape. And it just came over me again, thinking that through for them,” he said.
Romney said it was “very troubling to see the great violence that our Capitol Police and others are subjected to.” “It tears at your heart,” he said. Rob Portman, R- Ohio, said he went to talk to staff and aides after watching the footage, explaining “it was reliving a horrible day.”
“I talked to some of the staff afterwards. ... They were worse position than we were,” he said. “I talked to some leadership staff and they were, you know, in their offices and people were banging on the doors. And that was a lot more frightening.”
Portman, who had voted that the trial was unconstitutional, said he was still keeping his mind open.
“I’m impressed with the presenters,” he said. But, he said, “I think it’s a bad precedent to be convicting former presidents, private citizens.”
Jim Inhofe, R- Okla., told reporters Thursday that the Democratic case was becoming redundant: “To me, the more you hear it, the less credibility there is.”
But Richard Blumenthal, D- Conn., took issue with Republican complaints, explaining everyone needs to confront what happened.
“My Republican colleagues don’t want to hear or see what they’re having to face,” he said. “That’s really reprehensible, because all of the nation should be facing it, and they should be facing it by holding Donald Trump accountable, not wishing it away.”