Trump’s call to ‘fight’ was just political speech, impeachment lawyers say in seeking acquittal

As the drama unfolds on Capitol Hill, President Biden continues to try to focus on his agenda. On Friday, he met with governors and mayors at the White House to discuss his coronavirus relief package.

House Democrats closed their impeachment case against Trump on Thursday by linking his history of incendiary rhetoric and his months-long campaign to undermine the election to the statements of rioters who stormed the Capitol. They also raised the prospect of future violence without a conviction.

The impeachment charge against Trump alleges that he “willfully made statements that encouraged — and foreseeably resulted in — imminent lawless action at the Capitol.”

Trump’s speech before the riot contained no overt calls for his supporters to enter the Capitol or resort to violent means. But it included plenty of allusions to the idea that Congress accepting Biden’s victory was a result that must be stopped.