Since the start of Donald Trump’s impeachment on December 18, 2019, when the House of Representatives approved the articles of impeachment on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, the Senate—and nation—has been deeply politically divided. But last week on Wednesday, February 5th, President Donald Trump was acquitted of both charges against him, drawing the long-running impeachment process to its conclusion.
67 votes for either article would have been required to take Trump out of office. However, with the majority of Senate voting along party lines, neither article managed to push past a simple majority of 50 votes for conviction.
The first article, which charged Trump for abuse of power, achieved a 52-48 vote to acquit the president, rendering him not guilty. Notably, Senator Mitt Romney was the sole Republican to vote for the conviction of President Trump during the trial, and the only Senator to cross party lines.
“I acknowledge that my verdict will not remove the President from office,” said Romney prior to the vote. “But irrespective of these things, with my vote I will tell my children, and their children, that I did my duty to the best of my ability believing that my country expected it of me.”
The second article, which charged Trump for obstruction of Congress, achieved a 53-57 vote to acquit the president. No party lines were crossed during the second vote.
Republicans and Democrats remain divided about the trial’s conclusion. While some lament the failure of the trial, citing that acquitting Trump will set a new low standard of behavior in the presidency, others argue that allowing it to proceed may have instead only encouraged the petty squabbles of modern politics.
“If that becomes the new norm, future presidents, Democrats, and Republicans, will be paralyzed the moment they are elected,” said Jay Sekulow, one of Trump’s lawyers. “The bar for impeachment cannot be set this low.”
“While White House attorneys claim this behavior is not serious,” argued Kyrsten Sinema instead, “it is dangerous to the fundamental principles of American democracy to use the power of the federal government for personal or political gain.”
While the overall future of the White House remains uncertain, for better or for worse, the continuation of Trump’s presidency until the November election has been solidified.