Donald Trump's Second Impeachment Trial Becomes Official as House Delivers Article to Senate

President Donald Trump's second impeachment is official, as the House of Representatives delivered the charge to the Senate on Monday. According to CNN, House Impeachment Managers formally triggered the start of Trump's second impeachment trial as they walked through the halls of the U.S. Capitol to deliver the charge against the former president, who has been charged with "incitement of insurrection." The House of Representatives voted to officially impeach Trump in mid-January following the riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6, which involved a mob of the former president's supporters storming the building. The riot took place shortly after Trump delivered a series of remarks to his supporters in which he "reiterated false claims" that he won the election (President Joe Biden won the election and was officially sworn in as the 46th president on Wednesday).

CNN reported that the impeachment managers were lead into the Senate chamber by the lead impeachment manager, Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland. Chief Justice John Roberts will not be presiding over this process just as he did during Trump's first impeachment trial. Instead, Sen. Patrick Leahy, the president pro tempore of the Senate, is expected to preside over it. There is a specific reason why the chief justice will not be presiding over the trial. The Consitution calls for the chief justice to preside over the trial when the individual facing trial is the current president. But, since Trump has since left office, senators can preside in this case.

As of right now, it's unclear whether Democrats will seek witnesses in this case. Additionally, it's unclear how long the trial will last. On Monday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer declined to say whether they would be bringing forward witnesses. He did say that he was "hopeful" that Democrats would be able to negotiate with the Republican leader of the Senate, Mitch McConnell, on the structure of the proceedings. He said, "We'll see what happens. We don't know what the requests on the other side are yet, of the managers or the defense."

On Jan. 13, the House of Representatives officially voted to impeach Trump after charging him with "incitement of insurrection" following the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. He is the only president in United States history to have been impeached twice. Their impeachment resolution stated that Trump "demonstrated that he will remain a threat to national security, democracy and the Constitution if allowed to remain in office, and has acted in a manner grossly incompatible with self-governance and the rule of law." The five-page article of impeachment also stated, "He threatened the integrity of the democratic system, interfered with the peaceful transition of power, and imperiled a coequal branch of government. He thereby betrayed his trust as president, to the manifest injury of the people of the United States." Now that the House has delivered the impeachment charge to the Senate, the trial can get underway. It is expected to begin on the week of Feb. 8.