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Live updates: Day 1 of Trump's second impeachment trial

09 February 2021
Dan Ackermann

The impeachment trial for former President Trump kicked off in the Senate on Tuesday, beginning with debate over the constitutionality of the House prosecuting a president who has already left office.

The latest: The Senate updated its organizing resolution to have the chamber convene every day until a verdict is rendered, after Trump lawyer David Schoen withdrew a request to break for the Jewish Sabbath. Senators will vote on the framework for the trial shortly after convening at 1 p.m.

The big picture: Trump will almost certainly be acquitted, absent any late and groundbreaking evidence against him. Instead, both sides will be playing to a jury outside the Capitol — the court of public opinion.

  • Both Democrats and Republicans want to wrap the trial up quickly. Republicans don't want to spend any more time focusing on Donald Trump, and Democrats are eager to reframe the narrative around Biden's agenda and move forward with confirming his nominees.
  • As required by Senate rules, the trial will become the chamber's main focus over the next few days. All other activity will be forced to take a back seat.

On the opposite end of Pennsylvania Avenue, Biden is continuing to distance himself from the trial. Today he will meet with business leaders about his $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief proposal.

What to watch: The Senate will be given four hours on Tuesday to debate whether the trial is constitutional. The chamber will then vote via simple majority to proceed.

  • On Wednesday, House impeachment managers will begin making their case that Trump instigated the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
  • Trump’s defense team, which consists of David Schoen, Bruce Castor, Michael van der Veen and Julieanne Bateman, will follow with their own presentation.
  • Both sides get 16 hours — over two days — to make their respective case. Neither is expected to use all of their allotted time.

Go deeper:

This story is developing. Please check back for updates.

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.