Article 2 Section 4 of the US Constitution states:
"The President, Vice President and all Civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors."
The relevant part here is:
"Shall be removed from Office..."
Trump is not "in office" therefore he cannot be "removed from office".
Either we live in a country where we follow the laws or we live under mob rule.
Period.
If we live under mob rule, then ANY of us can be detained, arrested, tried for any reason and punished up to and including execution by the state.
This trial should not even be happening. Even IF the alleged crime, incitement to violence, had occurred, since Trump is no longer president there are absolutely no legal grounds, no Constitutional grounds to have an impeachment trial.
If anyone thinks Trump committed the crime of incitement, then they should report it to the proper authorities to prosecute him as the private citizen that he currently is.
Where are the people who talk all day, every day about criminal justice reform? How do you advocate for a "fair" justice system when your so-called elected representatives are illegally conducting a trial of a private citizen?
I'm not even going to argue whether the charges are valid because it does not matter. The trial itself is illegal under Article 2 section 4.
Period.
This is a lynch mob. And yes, I understand the emotional weight such a term engenders but it is what it is: A lynch mob. They want Trump's head and will do anything to get it. The Supreme Law of the Land be damned.
If they will do that to Trump then what happens when the mob comes for you? You think you're safe? In the space of 4 years, we went from "it's OK to punch a Nazi" to " The GOP is a terrorist organization deserving of military actions used against Al-Qaeda."
If you cannot call out this highly illegal action by the national "representatives" then I don't want to hear anything when a local PD puts his knee on you or your kid's neck or a bullet in your or your people's back. Because you didn't care about "procedure' and "legal restraint" when it affected someone YOU didn't like.