This Bruce Castor guy seems... not especially competent.

"We still remember what records are, right?"

Jeez, this dude is vamping like me when I haven't prepared for the lecture.

Especially because I'm sure I've rambled on about Dirksen at some point.

"Gallant Men, and now Gallant Men and Women, amirite, ladies? *wink*"

Is this what's known as sucking up to the jury?

I know that the outcome has is pre-determined, but his "senators are better than normal people" speech is pretty pathetic.

"It's funny -- this is an aside" is generally not a good thing to say in a college lecture, let along a trial.

Oh, I get it. He's appealing to the Senate's egotism and self-regard as a club that's supposed to put the breaks on popular passions.

It's actually shrewd -- not just in the trial, as that outcome has already been determined -- but to keep this in the minds of moderate Democrats

It's the kind of speech that you'd give to keep Manchin, Feinstein, et al on board with keeping the filibuster.

TIL I learned that Athens had a Senate.

"When Pennsylvania sends us their lawyers, they aren't sending us their best..."

"I forget what it was..." is not a good thing to say during the opening statement of a trial.

Low-key shade from the NYT live chat here.

"We have sent armies to other countries to persuade other countries to implement the liberties we enjoy here" is a very strange way to describe American imperialism.

"Partisan impeachments will become commonplace...

*beat*

You know, back when Bill Clinton was impeached in the '90s."

Haven't seen an immediate self-own like this since Rick James's story about f*cking up Eddie Murphy's couch.

GREECE WAS A DEMOCRACY, NOT A REPUBLIC.

If I were a Democratic senator I would be absolutely infuriated by this lazy, rambling, idiotic, and overweeningly smug performance by Castor here.

Castor seems unaware, after reading the 14th Amendment out from his pocket Constitution like a pompous asshole, that pretty much no one was actually prosecuted for treason after the Civil War, and in fact many ex-Confederates were sent back to Congress.

Did he just congratulate himself on being plain-spoken?

Castor's definitely winging it, because I don't think a man who prepped for this would have admitted that the American people were "fed up" with Donald Trump and voted him out of the White House.

"We changed what were going to do on account of that we thought the House manager's case was well done."

So, he's admitting he's winging it?

Well, that was embarrassing. Apparently totally consistent with Bruce Castor's career to date. https://www.pennlive.com/news/2016/08/bruce_castor_kathleen_kane.html

Schoen already doing better because he doesn't seem to literally be making up his speech as he's going along.

Schoen's basic argument seems to be "if you don't reconcile with us and let us get away with it, we'll burn this country to the f*cking ground."

He's said repeatedly "this trial will tear this country apart" and just implied that if this trial goes forward it will start a civil war.

They're gonna do this shit again if they have the chance.

Although Castor had the rambling free associationalism thing down much better, Schoen's speech is by far more Trumpian.

Ah, "cancel culture" makes its appearance. Guess Schoen has been on the phone with Macron.

Schoen, a man who once represented the Ku Klux Klan, sure seems concerned about people being potentially "disenfranchised."

One of the reasons why Schoen's speech is so Trumpian, aside from its aggressiveness, is just how much bullshit he spews out, both to flood the zone and to see what sticks.

Because it doesn't actually matter WHAT he says at all.

Trump won't be convicted, because the prosecutors don't have the votes.

He could just stand there in silence and he'd still win.

The flooding-the-zone-with-bullshit is a *political* strategy.

Clearly Schoen was attacking the Democrats for using a slick production company to produce their manipulative videos because the production company that he used to produce his manipulative videos absolutely sucks.

Clearly insofar as the Trump legal team actually has a strategy -- which is not necessary for them, since there is no way Trump will be convicted -- it is to put the pressure on moderate Democrats for political reasons.

On the other hand, if I were Joe Manchin, I'd be pretty pissed off by this smug, smarmy bastard, so it might backfire.

I give Schoen credit for actually citing precedent instead of just pulling out a pocket Constitution and vamping about how common law isn't, like, a thing man.

Ah, HERE comes the pocket Constitution.

Did he just pull out a copy of the Little Red Book?

"In conclusion, ladies and gentlemen, the Democrats are Maoists who must be opposed at all costs."

Turning this off. I have better things to do with my time on Earth.