Republican Senators Say They Plan to Absolve Trump Despite Visceral Presentation by House Democrats | CNN

This is how Mitt Romney fled from the mob on Capitol Hill 0:56

(CNN) - House

impeachment prosecutors presented senators with videos of their colleagues fleeing a pro-Trump mob that stormed the US Capitol yelling "stop the robbery."

They showed the rioters searching for then-Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and rummaging through senators' desks on the chamber floor.

Some of Trump's supporters were dressed in tactical gear, armed with zip ties.

Others held up Trump 2020 flags, smashed windows with poles and hung a gallows for Pence, who was constitutionally obligated to oversee the certification of the 2020 presidential election, and the peaceful transfer of power to Democrats.

But even after witnessing the deadly violence firsthand and recalling it again at the crime scene, many Republican senators appeared no closer Wednesday to convicting former President Donald Trump on the charge of "incitement to insurrection."

While impressed by the impeachment prosecutors' presentation, these Republicans said House Democrats failed to show that Trump's words led to the violent actions.

They compared the January 6 riot to last summer's racial justice protests and criticized how the trial is being handled.

Senator Lindsey Graham said he couldn't believe "we could lose the Capitol like this," but added that he didn't change his mind on whether to acquit Trump during the trial.

"I think there are more votes for acquittal after today than yesterday," said the Republican from South Carolina.

Senator Mike Braun called the prosecutors' visual presentation "fascinating," adding, "It's just as hard to take in now as it was then."

But when asked if he had changed his mind, the Indiana Republican said, "When you think the process is flawed in the first place, I think it will be different to come to a conclusion about the facts and the merits themselves."

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And Senator Ted Cruz said a direct Trump link to the pro-Trump riot was "strikingly absent."

The Texas Republican said that "there is no political candidate in the country," including "each and every Democratic senator," who has not used the same language as Trump, who told his followers "to fight like him. hell".

"They spent a lot of time focusing on the horrible acts of violence that were carried out by criminals, but the president's language does not come close to meeting the legal standard for incitement," Cruz said of the prosecutors' presentation.

The comments are the latest hint of the major hurdles Democrats face in getting the 67 votes needed to convict Trump, and they need 17 Republicans to break ranks if all 50 Democrats vote to convict the former president and then bar him from holding office again. .

"I think at best there are six Republicans, probably five and maybe six," Republican Sen. Tim Scott told CNN when asked if the video and images changed their mind about convicting Trump.

When asked if he considers himself an impartial jury, the South Carolina Republican said, "I think I'm just as impartial as the other 99."

The six Republicans could be Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine, Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, Ben Sasse of Nebraska, Mitt Romney of Utah and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, the six Republicans who broke with their party on Tuesday to vote on whether the impeachment was constitutional.

Cassidy, facing backlash among local Republicans for that vote, dismissed the idea that GOP complaints could influence her vote, saying, "My first allegiance is to the Constitution."

He added that it has not yet been decided whether to vote to convict Trump.

"I'm angry, upset," Murkowski said of the video.

"The evidence that has been presented is quite damning."

In a speech to the uproar on Capitol Hill, Trump urged his supporters "to make their voices heard in a peaceful and patriotic way," but also to "fight like hell," "never give up" and "never give in."

A couple of days earlier, he tweeted that "The Surrender Party Assembly" within the Republican Party will fall into infamy as weak and ineffective 'guardians' of our Nation, who were willing to accept the certification of fraudulent presidential numbers. "

He repeatedly told his followers to "stop the robbery!"

During the riot, Trump tried to call Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville to delay the certification of his loss, saying that Pence lacked "the courage to do what should have been done to protect our country and our Constitution."

Several Republicans appeared impressed by impeachment prosecutors after harshly criticizing the president's defense team Tuesday for lacking a coherent response.

South Dakota Senator John Thune, a spokesman for the minority and a member of the Republican leadership, said House prosecutors did "an effective job" and were "connecting the dots" between Trump's words and the insurrection.

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