Page:Materials in Support of H. Res. 24.pdf/28

 implicating our system of government committed while occupying the office of presidency, it falls within any reasoned interpretation of “high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” On January 6, 2021, President Trump committed the impeachable offense of incitement of insurrection by willfully making statements that, in context, encouraged and foreseeably resulted in lawless action at the Capitol. As explained above, he set the stage for the Capitol attack in the months leading up to January 6th, and on that date, he exhorted the mob into a frenzy, aimed it like a loaded gun down Pennsylvania Avenue, and pulled the trigger. His statements and actions surrounding this act of incitement confirm the conduct charged in the article of impeachment.
 * 2. President Trump Committed the Charged Impeachable Offense

President Trump expressly and impliedly encouraged his supporters to besiege the Capitol and engage in violent, unlawful conduct. The mob did not come together—united in purpose, mission, and plan—by accident. It did not engage in violence, or breach the Capitol’s defenses, without encouragement and provocation from President Trump. To the contrary, since Election Day, President Trump has done everything in his power, including taking steps beyond his lawful authority, to convince his supporters that they are victims of the greatest electoral fraud in history. He has blamed this “fraud” on state officials, state courts, federal courts, the media, Congress, and election administrators. He has convinced many of his supporters, falsely, that they actually voted him back into power and that their votes—indeed, their fundamental rights—have fallen victim to an array of nefarious forces working against them. To that end, he has repeatedly called on his supporters to “step up & FIGHT BACK” to resist “the steal.” He has personally threatened election officials, including Georgia Secretary of State Raffensperger, if they do not “find” votes or take steps needed to overturn the popular will. Following his lead, President Trump’s supporters have engaged in harassment and violent threats—including calls for a senior official who oversaw the United States election infrastructure to be “taken out at dawn and shot.” The president’s rhetoric led Gabriel Sterling, an election official in Georgia, to issue a prophetic warning in the aftermath of the election: “Mr. President … Stop inspiring people to commit potential acts of violence. Someone’s going to get hurt, someone’s going to get shot, someone’s going to get killed.”

Having promoted the false belief that his supporters are victims of a historic fraud—one that threatened not only America, but also their very safety and that of their families—President Trump called them to a “Save America Rally.” He planned that rally on the very same day that his