Former President Donald Trump's historic second impeachment trial ended with a 57-43 vote to acquit in the Senate. He faced a single charge of incitement of insurrection over his actions leading up to the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Here is how events are unfolding. All times Eastern.
Feb 12, 2021, 12:39 PM EST
Defense team: 'You can't incite what was already going to happen'
Trump defense attorney Michael van der Veen argued that if the Capitol attack was premeditated as some criminal complaints are alleging, Trump couldn't have incited it.
"The fact that the attacks were apparently premeditated, as alleged by the House managers, demonstrates the ludicrousness of the incitement allegation against the president," van der Veen said. "You can't incite what was already going to happen."
However, House impeachment managers argued Trump primed his supporters for violence for months with false claims of election fraud. They also argued Trump was aware of the violence underway at the Capitol while safe at the White House but was intentionally slow in his response.
Feb 12, 2021, 12:37 PM EST
Defense team blasts article as 'act of political vengeance'
Trump defense attorney Michael van der Veen opened arguments for the defense by calling the article of impeachment before the Senate an "unjust and blatantly unconstitutional act of political vengeance" and went on to play a montage of videos of Democrats in an effort to suggest their past rhetoric is not so different than that of the former president.
"This appalling abuse of the Constitution only further divides our nation when we should be trying to come together around shared priorities," he said.
However, the Senate on Tuesday voted 55-45 to move forward with the impeachment proceedings, affirming they are constitutional.
Michael van der Veen, an attorney for former President Donald Trump, speaks during the second impeachment trial of Trump in the Senate at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Feb. 12, 2021.
Senate Television via AP
Van der Veen went on to say Democrats' suggestion that Trump's speech led to violence is "patently absurd on its face" and that "no thinking person" should believe that.
"Nothing in the text could ever be construed as encouraging, condoning or enticing unlawful activity of any kind. Far from promoting insurrection against the United States, the president's remarks explicitly encouraged those in attendance to exercise their rights, peacefully and patriotically," he said.
In one of the videos van der Veen played, a few House Democrats -- including lead House impeachment manager Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md. -- objected to Trump's victory on the Electoral College certification following the 2016 election, as GOP lawmakers did to President Joe Biden's victory ahead of and after the Jan. 6 attack.
In another, he played clips of Trump praising "law and order" inter-spliced with Democratic leadership speaking in support of protests over the summer in the wake of the death of George Floyd in police custody.
Feb 12, 2021, 12:34 PM EST
Trump attorney points to 'inflammatory rhetoric' by Biden, Dems
Michael van der Veen, a member of Trump's legal team, pointed the finger at President Joe Biden and Democratic lawmakers for what he called "inflammatory language." He said that Trump's words were "ordinary political rhetoric" and likened to Biden's campaign slogan, "Battle for the Soul of America."
"Consider the language that the House impeachment article alleges to constitute incitement: 'If you don't fight like hell, you are not going to have a country anymore.' This is ordinary political rhetoric that is virtually indistinguishable from the language that has been used by people across the political spectrum for hundreds of years. Countless politicians have spoken of fighting for our principles. Joe Biden's campaign slogan was 'battle for the soul of America,'" van der Veen said. "No human being seriously believes that the use of such metaphorical terminology is incitement to political violence."
Castor also pointed the finger at Democratic lawmakers, citing Democratic support for Black Lives Matter peaceful protesters over the summer, saying that the proceedings were political.
"In short, this unprecedented effort is not about Democrats opposing political violence. It is about Democrats trying to disqualify their political opposition," Castor said. "It is constitutional cancel-culture."
"I'm anxious to see whether -- what my Republican friends do, if they stand up," Biden told reporters.
Biden, who had just finished taking a walk with first lady Jill Biden, added that he was not planning on speaking with any GOP senators on how they might vote. Some Republican senators did meet on Thursday evening with Trump's defense team.
