The House of Representatives has delivered the Article of Impeachment against former President Donald Trump to the Senate, triggering the beginning of the trial proceedings of the 45th president. Donald Trump is the first president to have been impeached by the House of Representatives twice and is now facing conviction on the charge that he inspired and conspired the violent insurrection at the Capitol on January 6, 2021 that claimed 5 lives and considerable property damage. If convicted, Trump faces a permanent prohibition from seeking federal office.

At the outset, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) should insist that any Senator who publicly cast doubt on the outcome of the presidential election cannot serve as a juror during this trial. There are a number of Republican senators, including Ted Cruz, Josh Hawley, and Rand Paul, that should not be allowed to serve as jurors. They, and others, helped fan the flames for the insurrection by their repeated false claims that the election was rigged and that Joe Biden was not the legitimate winner. Their constant lying and repeated airing of bogus theories helped fuel resentment among Trump supporters and gave them license to attack the Capitol on January 6. These senators cannot serve as impartial jurors and should be denied access to the trial.

Seemingly, with Trump temporarily out of view, some Republicans are attempting to downplay the insurrection and are hiding behind President Biden’s appeal for unity as a means to evade responsibility for the riot at the Capitol. They are hypocrites for doing so. These are the same ‘law and order’ folks who claimed ‘Blue Lives Matter’ but had no difficulty in putting the lives of Capitol Hill police in danger. The mob that assembled at the instruction of Donald Trump had no problem destroying federal property, defiling the American flag, and pledging allegiance to the flag of Donald Trump, while claiming to be patriots. It was Donald Trump who falsely told the crowd that he would be leading them to the Capitol, and then bailed so he could watch the mayhem from the cozy confines of the White House. It was Donald Trump who inspired one of his fanatics to enter the Capitol with a Confederate flag, the first time that treasonous symbol had breached the walls of the ‘People’s House.’

It should also not be forgotten that it was Donald Trump whose constant lies gave encouragement to the rioters to seek out Speaker Nancy Pelosi and former Vice President to do harm to both individuals. We should not forget the brandishing of weapons, firearms, the chants, and the display of a noose on the Capitol grounds. This was no peaceful protest. This was an all-out White supremacist, neo-Nazi insurrection aimed at overthrowing the government by preventing the certification by the House of Representatives of Joe Biden’s victory over Donald Trump. And this crowd was prepared to kill to stop a Biden presidency. It was Trump’s manic plea that fed the mob and prompted the violence the world witnessed.

The Republican Party has to answer for all of this. They should not be allowed to weasel their way out of having to answer for their complicity in the January 6 insurrection. While Trump may be on trial in the Senate, it is the Republican Party that is equally on trial and under suspicion of treason. This trial is necessary because we need to know where Republicans stand. They are either loyal to the nation or are co-conspirators loyal to a treasonous president. There is no gray area here. We need a recorded vote to see where Republicans really stand. They will be judged on the basis of their loyalty to the nation and their oath of office.

This is the moment of truth. For the past 4 years the likes of Ted Cruz, Lindsay Graham and their spineless Republican colleagues have allowed Donald Trump to trample the Constitution and like scared subjects, not only defended Trump but paved the way for his transgressions. The blood of those who died as a result of the riot at the Capitol is on their hands. Republicans are going to have to decide once and for all who they serve – the American public or Donald Trump. If they choose the latter, they must be punished in-kind. We should make certain that their political contributions dry up and the Senate Democratic leadership should strip the co-conspirators of their committee assignments. Hopefully, the families of the police officers who died and were injured will file lawsuits against the Republicans who inspired the riot. This is not the time to play ‘nice’ or to submit to some false sense of unity. There is no unity without justice, and if there is no justice, there should be no peace for these Republican traitors.

Let the trial begin, but more importantly, let justice reign.