General Discussion

lindysalsagal

(20,733 posts) Tue Feb 9, 2021, 09:37 PM Feb 2021

WAPO: Exiled Klansman has a sad

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-impeachment-trial-florida/2021/02/09/03ccaa72-6a61-11eb-9f80-3d7646ce1bc0_story.html

In self-imposed exile, Trump watches with unhappiness as second impeachment trial unfolds

By Ashley Parker and Josh Dawsey Feb. 9, 2021 at 7:47 p.m. EST

Several Trump advisers also described Castor’s performance in harsh terms as underwhelming, as did a number of senators, including Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who said the shoddy defense spurred him to change his vote on the constitutionality of the proceedings.

He is adrift, friends say, with no clear sense of what comes next for the first time in his political life. They add that Trump is calmer than they expected as he faces down another historic indictment in a career littered with them. At least four former senior Trump administration officials independently described the former president as “chill” or “chilling.”

Nonetheless, the Senate impeachment trial that began Tuesday is never far from his mind, allies say. The former president is still privately fuming over fellow Republicans who he believes have wronged him, from Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming (who voted to impeach him) to House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy of California (who said that Trump “bears responsibility” for the attack on the Capitol, before backtracking).

This portrait of Trump in this moment is the result of interviews with 11 advisers, allies and confidants, many of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity to share candid details.