On the recordMarch 1, 2021
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to have my opinion memorandum in the impeachment trial of President Donald J. Trump be printed in the Record. There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows: Opinion Memorandum of United States Senator John F. Reed in the Impeachment Trial of President Donald John Trump I. FINDINGS On January 13, 2021, the United States House of Representatives passed House Resolution 24,\1\ ``Impeaching Donald John Trump, President of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors.'' Based on the evidence in the record, the arguments of the House Impeachment Managers, and the arguments of President's Counsel, I conclude as follows: Mr. Trump has violated his oath to take care that the laws be faithfully executed and has acted in a manner that is fundamentally incompatible with the constitutional order. The House Impeachment Managers have proven that Mr. Trump's incitement of insurrection amounts to the constitutional standard of ``high Crimes and Misdemeanors'' for which the remedy of conviction and disqualification is warranted. II. THE CONSTITUTIONAL GROUNDS FOR IMPEACHMENT ``The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments.'' \2\ With these few words, the Framers of the Constitution entrusted the Senate with the most awesome power within a democratic society: whether to remove an impeached president from office. A.…





