Thread by @politico

The trial is here. After weeks of tension in the House following the Jan. 6 insurrection that pushed lawmakers to impeach Donald Trump for the second time, the focus is shifting to the Senate as the impeachment trial kicks off tomorrow. politi.co/3cSuKAg

Big questions about this week's impeachment trial still remain, including how long it will last and whether witnesses will be called. What we do know is that it's highly doubtful enough Republicans will join Democrats to convict Trump. politi.co/3cSuKAg

But the arguments used by both Trump's lawyers and House impeachment managers will hold critical clues for the future of the post-Trump GOP and the Democratic midterm message politi.co/3cSuKAg

Democrats plan to use a trove of evidence in the trial — from video, social media and other public domains — to help make the case that Trump's words and actions incited rioters to attack the Capitol over his baseless claims that the election was “stolen” politi.co/3cSuKAg

Republicans have, for weeks now, latched onto the procedural argument that a former president cannot be impeached as a private citizen, allowing them to avoid passing judgment on Trump’s conduct politi.co/3cSuKAg

Democrats haven’t said whether they’ll call witnesses during the trial. The thing is, they don’t want to get stuck in some drawn out court fight for witness testimony like last time, particularly when most of the managers and jurors are witnesses. politi.co/3cSuKAg

Both parties are on board with a speedy trial, with Democrats eager to focus their attention on passing Biden’s agenda and confirming his Cabinet nominations, while Republicans are dreading weeks of focusing on Trump’s actions politi.co/3cSuKAg