Senate verdict acquits Trump: Dems fail to get two-third
majority support |

The curiously awaited Trump trial and verdict has come fast
with an acquittal as the Democrats failed to gather 17
Republicans to support his conviction that needs two-third
majority in the Senate. The vote was 57 to 43. |
WASHINGTON, Feb 13: Former President Donald Trump is acquitted of the charge of inciting the Capitol violence by the US Senate. He is eligible to run for
President next time.
The Senate voting on Saturday did not receive two-third majority support to
convict the former President of inciting the riots of January 6. The vote was
57-43 while a conviction verdict required 67 Senators voting in favour in a
100-member chamber with each party having 50 members currently. Seven Republicans voted with the 50 Dems. However, Trump
has become the only President to be impeached twice.
In a statement soon after, Trump expressed thanks for the verdict and condemned
the trial as "yet another phase of the greatest witch-hunt in the history of
our country."
Although the impeachment trial proceedings in the US Senate were expected to
end early on Saturday with final arguments and verdict, the prosecutors, in
a surprise move, before entering the final arguments, decided to call witnesses,
leading to interruptions lasting a few hours.
When House impeachment manager Jamie Raskin said he wanted to call a Republican
lawmaker as a witness, Trump's lawyers threatened they too wanted to call witnesses
like VP Kamala Harris and Speaker Nancy Pelosi. The Senate even voted 55 to
45 for calling witnesses but eventually an agreement was hammered out and the
trial moved into the final stage, to last two hours for each side.
On Friday, the defence had, surprisingly, wrapped up their arguments in just
three hours, calling the charge against Trump as "witch-hunt" and "politically"
motivated. Attorney David Schoen said Dems were manipulating the words Trump
used at the rally that preceded the Capitol rampage. He argued that in the usage
of "fight like hell" Trump was speaking figuratively. He cited, countless politicians
have spoken of "fighting" for our principles, that is not literally. An event
otherwise to be peaceful was hijacked. The rioters had planned violence before
Trump spoke, the attorney added to his argument.
Trump's attorneys Bruce Castor and David Schoen had filed a 78-page trial brief
on Monday which stated that the charge against Trump was "constitutionally flawed"
as he had already left office as the President, meaning, a President can be
impeached only while in office. The charge is that he called a rally of his
supporters near White House and made an incendiary speech on January 6 in which
he asked them "to fight like hell". In the rampage of the Capitol that followed,
five people died, including a police officer. The halls and chambers of Capitol
where the House and Senate were holding meetings on the scheduled counting of
the electoral college votes in the presidential election and certification of
the results, were vandanised and the members of the Congress and the staff had
to run away from their respective chambers for safety. The members and staff
cowered for hours in hiding. Ten Republicans had voted for the single article
of impeachment in the House, "violence against the Govt of US," on January 25
and the article was sent to the Senate. However, both parties later agreed to
delay taking up the trial in the Senate - 67 needed for conviction - as the Democrats wanted time to focus on Biden's agenda as he has only just
taken over and the Trump side wanted time to assemble attorneys and collect evidence.
Meanwhile, Trump rejected the impeachment managers' plea to testify in the
Senate. They did not consider issuing a subpoena.
Senate had on Tuesday voted by simple majority for Trump's trial rejecting
arguments of unconstitutionality in impeachment once out of office. The vote
to proceed with trial was 56 to 44. For conviction the requirement is 2/3rd
ie 67 members - 17 Republicans must support. The strength of the Republicans
and the Democrats in the Senate is 50:50.
Dems impeachment manager wrapped up two days (Wednesday and Thursday) of presentations,
urging conviction of Trump, and rested the case on Thursday. The main charge
was Trump "incited insurrection." Defence lawyers delivered their case on Friday
and final arguments and verdict came on Saturday.
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SELECTIONS FROM OUR ARCHIVES |
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Top Govt officer thrashed, kicked inside Bhubaneswar office: Incident sparks a debate
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The incident has triggered a debate on social media whether the officer refused to take orders from a party leader or he was accused of any corruption, some netizens justifying the handling in either case, that Ratnakar was blocking public welfare work! It is true the Govt machinery has been the enemy Number One of the people of this country, existing for itself and for these politicians, for well over seven decades. India will never make an inch of progress - real progress, not make-believe-progress - unless and until this machinery is eliminated.
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UK's House of Commons votes to legalise assisted dying: What it means | |
ANALYSIS: There have been cases of Britons going to Switzerland to get rid of a miserable life. Now once the House of Lords also passes the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, terminally ill Britons can call it quits with the help of a medical practitioner here itself. But the measure when comes into practice, will have very serious social consequences, it is feared. There won't be comparisons, even as tropes in Latin American folklores. The worst case scenario is of those who are not terminally ill also trying to misuse the provision to leave this world early when life with dignity is not available. But that is, in fact, a political question and not a moral imbroglio!
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What caused Air India Boeing 787 crash? Some questions, some answers | |
The CCTV footage and the video circulating on social media do not indicate any serious abnormalities in takeoff or descent, it has been confirmed. The disaster is becoming curiouser and curiouser. The flight path was not curvy. And the aircraft maintained a steady, gliding descent with its nose straight and the wings perfectly level. The pilot's distress call does not specify what prevented lift and climb-out. Here are some expert opinions. The sole purpose is to raise travellers' awareness about air travel.
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Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla line brings Kashmir Valley on India's rail map |
- The Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla line provides Kashmir with all-weather connectivity and integrates the Valley with the rest of India.
- The saying 'Kashmir to Kanyakumari' is now a dream come true.
- The Chenab bridge on the line, an engineering marvel, is the world's highest
railway bridge, taller than the Eiffel Tower. (Video: File)
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Work done, Elon Musk steps down from DOGE, leaves White House | |
Musk wrote: "My scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end... The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government." Now on it will be on auto-pilot.
PROGNOSIS: DOGE was prematurely born to protect the country by aborting an impending socio-economic disaster which very few people could see coming.
Although its immediate job was to save American taxpayers billions by slashing waste, eliminating fraud, cutting Government bloat and ensuring utmost efficiency in administration for the good of the people.
(Today's headlines )
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Ailing Asiatic lion Pataudi too dies of bird flu at Kanpur zoo
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Originally from Junagadh, Gujarat, Pataudi was relocated to Etawah Lion Safari in September 2019 before being transferred to Gorakhpur Zoo in 2021. Recently it was receiving treatment for pancreatic and liver infections. After tigress Shakti died in the zoo on May 7 due to bird flu, Pataudi was shifted to Kanpur. Some birds are also reported to have died mysteriously around Gorakhpur. All zoos in UP are closed for fear of a bird flu outbreak.
Three other animals too had died - a tiger, a leopardess and a female wolf. Wolf Bhairavi died last Saturday, leopardess Mona died the Thursday before that and tiger Kesari died on March 30. Some of them had Shakti's symptoms but the cause of death has not been confirmed yet.
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48 tourist destinations closed in Kashmir following Pahalgam terror attack
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As tourist inflow is an indicator of normalcy returning to an erstwhile terrorist infested Valley, the Government has been trying hard to make everything travel-friendly, launching lot many projects and bringing Kashmir on the national rail map that physically completes the process of Kashmir's integration with the rest of India. And that defeats the designs of Pakistan eyeing Kashmir and simply explains a recrudescence of terrorism in J&K.
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Trump slaps ‘kind’, ‘reciprocal’ tariffs on trading partners; a 'lenient' 26% on India!
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ANALYSIS: There is a lot of hue and cry around the world over Trump's tariffs. But tariff, simply put, is a tax. But unlike tax, it affects the exporting country too. Domestic prices will go up for some time. Nothing more will happen, good or bad!
What motivated Trump's newfound policy, apart from being a stunt to justify his existence in the White House, is a false realisation that increased tariff will make foreign goods prohibitive, thereby boosting local production, and create more jobs, and more prosperity will ring in! If that is true, India would have been shining by now: Producing own Rolls-Royce La Rose Noire Droptail and Scotch Whiskies! And what about coconut and palm oil by America!
(Today's headlines )
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Trump signs order to shut Education Dept - And the contrast with India
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PROGNOSIS: It looks a Real New Trump is emerging - courageous, balanced, powerful and disinterested. Determined to save his country from the cliff, he has done quite a few draconian things that will reduce the burden of debts of the Federal entity, like the golden handshake, stopping senseless funding, pulling out of a worthless WHO. Shutting the Education Department is another. On the other hand, running it is also not the Centre's job either (We will convincingly elaborate it in the next chapter).
In India the scene is just the opposite. Centralisation is the core agenda and identity of the ruling dispensation without which it has no existence, or in other words, it exists for that set of schemes only. A realisation of this never dawned upon any Opposition party in 2014 or any time thereafter, what to talk of being able to see it coming 70 years ago! The consequence of all this violation of basic natural law of the universe we cannot predict.
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Sunita, Wilmore's Dragon splashes down in Gulf: What delayed their return? |
THE AMERICAN CONUNDRUM: Political venom has migrated to top echelons in the US. It was reported last year NASA has become politicised, vitiated. But NASA refuted the charge. How Boeing developed a glitch but its unmanned return was smooth. When Suni-Wilmore were stranded last June, why the return was set for February? Because that comes only after January 20! SpaceX called the shots, for itself and for Trump. Then the mission was manipulated for March for a better bargain! In between, what made Elon Musk 'predict' during campaign if Kamala Harris wins he would be in jail. In politics, it is said, "the only rule is there are no rules." Difficult times for Americans too.
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All 80k health workers in US offered $25,000 voluntary buyout: Administering wrong prescriptions!
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The terminations are part of a large-scale exercise going on all across Fed departments and organisations to reduce wasteful Government expenditure as decided by a Trump in a mess gone berserk, and improve administrative efficiency following the whims of billionaire and his associate Elon MusK and his DOGE. It has not been shared how terminations are going to raise the efficiency bar! It looks like Trump has stolen some of the prescriptions meant for India. But the American problems are quite different.
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