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SATURDAY FEBRUARY 6 2021 THE NEWS 5A WASHINGTON The impeachment trial of former President Don- ald Trump will likely be short and almost certainly result in an acquittal. Yet Democrats still view it as an opportunity to not only repudiate the actions of the former president, but drive a larger wedge in- side the Republican Party. While some Democrats are eager to advance Pres- ident Joe agenda, others see next high-profile Senate trial as an opening to force the GOP to reckon with role in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, an event Republican lead- ers desperately want to move past.

think a false choice between account- ability and said Ben Wikler, the chairman of the Wisconsin Demo- cratic Party. just sweep it under the rug now. Republicans are trying to change the sub- Even though the Trump- inspired riot at the U.S. Capitol occurred just one month ago, attention in Washington has mostly shifted to the new admin- istration, as Biden has moved swiftly to fill his Cabinet, sign a flurry of executive orders and ne- gotiate a COVID-19 relief package. The trial, set to begin Tuesday, will bring the storming of the Capitol back to the forefront, allowing Democrats to lay out the most complete and detailed case yet of how the events of Jan.

6 un- folded, particularly since so much of the chaos was captured on video. House impeachment managers applied additional pres- sure this week by asking Trump to testify under oath, a request the former president quickly denied. must stay on mes- sage and let it be known what happened. And I really think people have heard in a coherent manner without replays, without commentary, what happened in chron- ological said Clay Middleton, a Democratic National Committee member from South Car- olina. issue may be, what does the court of public opinion feel about this at the end of the After 45 out of 50 Re- publican senators voted to dismiss the trial as uncon- stitutional last week, Democrats will be hard- pressed to find at least 17 GOP votes necessary to convict Trump, regardless of the evidence presented.

would be a huge mistake for us to say, because the jury pool is somewhat rigged, not going to do what the Constitution calls on us to do, which is hold the trial and render said Sen. Jeff Merkley, a Democrat from Oregon. THE COURT OF PUBLIC OPINION As Republicans have struggled to find their footing since their 2020 election losses, most have determined that while Trump is broadly unpop- ular, they risk alien- ating his most fervent supporters if they want to return to power in the near future. That may prevent Dem- ocrats from persuading GOP lawmakers during the trial, but they think they will have better luck with the general public. Entering the trial, poll- ing has suggested the public narrowly favors convicting Trump.

A Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday found that of Americans support a Senate convic- tion, compared to in opposition. The divide is mostly partisan, but inde- pendents favor conviction by four percentage points. The survey also found that three-quarters of Americans said they are concerned about contin- ued violence by extremist groups emboldened by the insurrection. that so much is in the open, it seems fair and reasonable to me to spend a week on this be- fore moving to a final said Jim Manley, who was an aide to former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. see little downside for While the 2022 mid- term election is more than 20 months away, Demo- crats have already tried to seize on the senti- ment.

The Wisconsin Democratic Party aired ads last month calling on GOP Sen. Ron Johnson, who is up for re-election next year, to resign in the wake of the Capitol riot and criticizing GOP Rep. Mike Gallagher for voting against impeaching Trump. Wikler, the state party chairman, said they are planning a similar round of ads during the trial. Democrats argue that since the events of Jan.

6 occurred mostly in public view, the party has a much more straightforward case to make this time around compared to the first im- peachment trial, when Trump was accused of pressuring Ukraine to investigate his political rivals. Ben Tulchin, a Demo- cratic pollster who worked on Bernie presi- dential campaign, com- pared the Capitol riot to other moments when Trump and the GOP at large experienced a severe drop in public opinion, including the Access Hol- lywood tapes during the 2016 campaign, his hand- ling of violence in Char- lottesville in 2017 and his policies that separated migrant children from their families in 2018. Trump and his party rebounded by various degrees after those events, so the challenge for Dem- ocrats will be making his role in the Capitol riot stick in the long term. Trump will continue to play a major role in shap- ing the direction of the GOP while out of office and may run for president again in 2024. is a very different dynamic than the first impeachment Tul- chin said.

not sure how long the shelf life will be, but in the near-term and the midterms, it will be helpful. And the right thing to OFF THE Still, some Democrats worry that even the most effective arguments at the trial do much to sway the public if Trump walks away without any sort of further punishment and can claim victory, like he did when he avoided conviction in the first trial one year ago. Sen. Tim Kaine, floated the idea of censur- ing the former president, but acknowledged the proposal have enough support from members of either party. A censure would only re- quire support from a sim- ple majority in the Senate.

very worried about going through this trial and having the punch line at the end being, Trump acquitted Kaine told reporters this week. Senate Republican lead- ers have warned that Bi- den is unlikely to receive confirmation votes for his Cabinet nominees during a trial, which could stretch several weeks, depending on the number of witness- es the former legal team decides to call to testify. 2020 trial lasted 21 days. Former Montana Sen. Max Baucus said Demo- crats would be wise to adopt the Kaine approach of censure, but at the minimum dispense with the trial swiftly.

clear that Trump will not be convicted. If the case, I think the Democrats should proceed but with a truncated short trial. Make the case, go into great detail, have the vote and get it behind Baucus said. in Congress should get it over with as quickly as possible. Strip off the Adam Wollner: 202-383-6020, David Catanese: 202-383-6102, ANALYSIS Democrats trying to balance Biden agenda, Trump trial BY ADAMWOLLNER AND DAVID CATANESE WASHINGTON The Senate endorsed President Joe $1.9 trillion stimulus package just before sunrise Friday, voting along party lines over unified Republican opposition to approve a budget blueprint that would allow Democrats to enact it with no GOP sup- port.

The House voted 219- 209 to back the budget resolution on Friday after- noon, according to C- SPAN. In the Senate, after a 15-hour voting session that stretched overnight, Vice President Kamala Harris arrived early in the morn- ing to the Senate dais, where she cast her first tiebreaking vote. The Senate adopted the budget measure by a vote of 51-50 at 5:30 a.m. In the marathon session known as a vote-a-rama and for which more than 800 amendments were drafted Senate Demo- crats maneuvered through a series of politically tricky amendments that Repub- licans sought to attach to their budget plan. The senators also en- dorsed a number of ideas that could drive negotia- tions on stimulus measure, embracing a proposal to exclude high earners from direct pay- ments of up to $1,400 an idea that the president and leading Democrats have already said they are open to and the creation of a new form of child allow- ance for low- and middle- income families.

Senators also agreed to bar any increase in the federal minimum wage, a center- piece of plan, during the pandemic. Despite the amend- ments, the process left plan largely intact as Democrats moved for- ward. cannot repeat the mistakes of the said Sen. Chuck Schumer, the majority lead- er. cannot do too In the House, Demo- crats did not require Re- publican support to ap- prove it.

While the mea- sure does not have the force of law, the action paves the way for the next step in the budget recon- ciliation process, which ultimately would allow Democrats to advance plan without Re- publican votes. Still, the proposal did not pass the Senate with- out some setbacks for Democrats. In a potential sign of trouble ahead for a major plank of plan, the Senate agreed to a Republican proposal by Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, to prohibit any minimum wage increase during the pandemic. The measure passed by a voice vote, signaling that Democrats were not at- tempting to defeat it.

Bi- stimulus package would increase the wage to $15 per hour by 2025, and Sen. Bernie Sanders, who has been lead- ing the push for the wage increase in the Senate, said he would not contest effort because he had never sought to raise it during the pandemic. But the vote was a signal that the wage increase could be difficult to pass in an evenly split Senate, where at least one Demo- crat, Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, is on record opposing it. $15 federal minimum wage would be devastating for our hardest-hit small businesses at a time they can least afford Ernst said on the Senate floor.

should not have a one-size-fits-all policy set by Washington politi- Proponents of raising the wage believe it can still be included in the final plan, forcing a tough vote for Democrats opposed to the increase but who want to vote against the entire stimulus package. need to end the crisis of starvation wages in Iowa and around the United Sanders said. He added that he planned to try to get the phased-in wage increase included in the reconcil- iation bill, which can be approved on a simple majority vote, circum- venting a filibuster which requires 60 votes to over- come. But it is not clear whether the effort will succeed given the strict rules of the process, which mandate that any policy changes directly affect federal revenues. Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday that Demo- crats would not give up on trying to raise the wage to $15 an hour.

Entering the early hours of the morning, senators in both parties pushed for- ward test votes to show- case their dueling pri- orities. In an evenly split Senate, any amendment required the support to pass, and there- fore several failed on a 50-50 tie. Among the Republican proposals that fell were measures to reduce fund- ing to states like New York, which is under in- vestigation over coro- navirus deaths in nursing homes; to prohibit funding for schools that do not reopen for in-person class- es once teachers are vacci- nated; and to block funds from so-called jurisdic- tions that do not cooperate with federal law enforce- ment on immigration matters. Congress backs relief plan, with some reservations BY LUKE BROADWATER, HAILEY FUCHS AND JIM TANKERSLEY New York Times ALEX BRANDON AP Vice President Kamala Harris, shown Friday at an Oval Office meeting, cast the tiebreaking vote to pass a budget resolution in the Senate that would clear the way for pandemic relief. The House passed the resolution later Friday.

The Pentagon will de- ploy troops to assist get- ting Americans vaccinated against COVID-19, the White House said Friday. Coronavirus senior adviser Andy Slavitt an- nounced that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has approved a request for assistance from the Feder- al Emergency Manage- ment Agency. It means about 1,000 active duty military personnel will deploy to help state vacci- nation centers. President Joe Biden has called for setting up 100 mass vaccination centers within a month. Two are opening in California, and Slavitt said military per- sonnel will arrive there in a little over a week.

About of Americans have had the full two-dose regimen required. ASSOCIATED PRESS Pentagonwill send troops to aid vaccination drives Russia on Friday ex- pelled three European diplomats whom it ac- cused of participating in illegal protests in support of jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny a move announced as the Euro- pean foreign pol- icy chief was visiting Mos- cow and as Navalny faced a new criminal trial. The timing of the ex- pulsions of diplomats from Germany, Poland and Sweden seemed intended to send a message both at home and abroad. To the West, the deci- sion signaled that Russia was not prepared to com- promise on the Navalny case. For domes- tic audience, the expul- sions served as the latest example of what the Kremlin has described as Western interference.

NEW YORK TIMES Russia expels EU diplomats over Navalny rallies President Joe dogs will make an appear- ance during the Puppy Bowl this weekend. The two German Shep- herds, Champ and Major, will appear alongside first lady Jill Biden in a public service announcement focused on mask-wearing set to air during Puppy Bowl XVII. The event, which fea- tures a group of rowdy puppies playing in a model stadium and airs as an alternative to the Super Bowl every year, is fo- cused on raising aware- ness about adopting shel- ter pets something the Bidens have experienced themselves. They adopted Major from the Delaware Humane Association, and he is the first shelter dog to move into the White House. ASSOCIATED PRESS Biden dogs star in ad to air during Puppy Bowl Hundreds of members of deposed ruling party declared themselves Friday to be the sole legitimate repre- sentatives of the people and asked for internation- al recognition as the coun- government, as pro- tests against the military takeover swelled.

Nearly 300 politicians from ousted leader Aung San Suu party an- nounced they had named a committee to carry out the functions of Parlia- ment, according to a Na- tional League for Democ- racy party Facebook page. In a letter to the United Nations and the interna- tional community posted on social media, the party also asked for targeted sanctions and for busi- nesses to cut ties with the military. ASSOCIATED PRESS Civilian politicians defy military coup in Myanmar.