Donald Trump’s word has been scarce since the riots on Capitol Hill that stunned America and the world on Wednesday, January 6. A little less than a week after the invasion of the US Congress, the outgoing president has estimated, on Tuesday January 12, that the impeachment procedure about to be launched against him by the Democrats was “Totally ridiculous” and caused “Immense anger” among his supporters.
“This is the continuation of the greatest witch hunt in history. (…) This causes immense anger “Mr. Trump said from the gardens of the White House. “I don’t want violence”, he added during this first statement to the press since January 6. Accused by Democrats of having “Prompted” to the violent events that occurred in Congress on January 6, Mr. Trump, who was speaking to reporters before his departure for Alamo in South Texas, ensured that his virulent speech just before the invasion of Congress by his supporters were “Quite suitable”.
Arrived there, he gave a speech with a tone contrasting singularly with the one, very aggressive, delivered on January 6 in front of his supporters just before the assault on the Capitol: “The time for appeasement has come for our country, the time for peace and calm”, notably declared the American president.
“Hundreds of indictments” to come after the violence
The US Department of Justice said on Tuesday it anticipated “Hundreds of indictments”, some of which for “Sedition”, after the violence at the Capitol. The charges held so far were the simplest, to act quickly, but “We are considering retaining major crimes like sedition and conspiracy”, detailed Washington Federal Attorney Michael Sherwin at a press conference.
At the same time, the Washington post published an internal Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) note stressing that a report on the organization and threats of violent action on Capitol Hill on January 6 had been validated the day before and sent to several members of the agency, including some of its representatives in the federal capital, Washington. According to this note, discussions spotted online asked participants in particular “To stop calling [le rassemblement] a parade, a rally, or a demonstration. Go prepared for war ”.
Twitter’s “catastrophic error”
The tenant of the White House, who will leave power in eight days, also estimated that social networks such as Twitter, which suspended his account, were “A catastrophic error”. “They divide us, they demonstrate what I predicted a long time ago, they make a terrible mistake which will be very, very bad for our country, it causes others to do the same”, denounced the outgoing president.
At the foot of the wall he had built on the Mexican border, Mr. Trump also affirmed that ” the 25the amendment poses no risk to me ”, in reference to the wish of democratic parliamentarians to see the vice-president, Mike Pence, take up with the principal ministers (cabinet) this device of the American Constitution making it possible to remove the head of state from power because of inability to lead.
Donald Trump is, in parallel, under the threat of a second impeachment procedure, the indictment of which will be examined on Wednesday by the House of Representatives. Supported by a large part of the Democrats and with the possible support of Republicans – the leaders of the party not having given specific instructions to their elected officials – the indictment targeting him should be easily adopted in the lower house of the Congress.
This vote would mark the formal opening of the second impeachment procedure against the 45e President of the United States, but doubts remain about the course and outcome of the trial which will then have to take place in the Senate, now with a Republican majority. Democrats will take control of the upper house on January 20, but will need the rallying of many Republicans to achieve the two-thirds majority needed for his conviction.
