The unlikely path to conviction

Democratic House impeachment managers are presenting an organized, effective case for impeachment; South Africa will begin using the Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine. Tonight's Sentences was written by Gabby Birenbaum. TOP NEWS The impeachment trial is underway Mark Wilson/Getty Images - Tuesday’s impeachment proceedings provided a preview of what we can expect this week: a principled, emotional Democratic case, a confusing defense of former President Trump, and an outcome that, for all intents and purposes, seems preordained in Trump’s favor. [[Vox / Aaron Rupar](] - Democratic House impeachment managers opened yesterday’s debate — over the constitutionality of impeaching a president after they have left office — with a video chronologically depicting the events of January 6 and Trump’s role in fomenting the riot. They relied on historical examples and constitutional law arguments to say there was precedent for impeachment. [[Politico / Josh Gerstein](] - Rep. Jamie Raskin, the lead House impeachment manager, was particularly effective when he closed by offering an emotional testimony about his own experience of the insurrection, including bringing family members to the Capitol and realizing he had put them in danger. [[Atlantic / David A. Graham](] - Trump’s defense was less organized. In rambling statements, his lawyers tried to paint the effort as a Democratic attempt to never have to compete with Trump again while simultaneously acknowledging he lost the election. [[NPR / Deirdre Walsh](] - Republican senators were unimpressed by Trump’s lawyers’ performance, particularly in contrast with the case House Democrats made. But in the end, only six Republicans voted in favor of the trial’s constitutionality. [[Washington Post / Amy B. Wang and Felicia Sonmez](] - Just one — Bill Cassidy of Louisiana — changed his mind from a previous vote, suggesting the strength of each side’s case does not particularly matter to most Republican senators. [[Vox / Li Zhou](] - The former president was reportedly fuming over the performance of his lawyer Bruce Castor, frustrated by the poor case his allies were making. [[NYT / Maggie Haberman](] - House Democrats continued their presentation today with extended video footage, including previously unseen shots from Capitol cameras, of just how violent the riot was, the statements Trump made to the crowd, and the testimony of the rioters themselves, who attribute their decision to storm the Capitol to Trump. [[NBC News / Adam Edelman and Alex Moe](] - Democrats' argument today was all about Trump's incitement of the insurrection through three directives: that the election was stolen, that his supporters could stop it, and that they needed to fight in order to do so. [[AP / Lisa Mascaro, Eric Tucker, Mary Clare Jalonick, and Jill Colvin](] [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( South Africa turns to Johnson & Johnson's vaccine - Although the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is still undergoing testing, South Africa will begin delivering the shot to health care workers after scrapping plans to use the AstraZeneca vaccine. [[AP / Andrew Meldrum](] - An early study showed the AstraZeneca vaccine only offers “minimal protection” against the new variant that has cropped up in South Africa, causing health officials to recalibrate. Officials say they are waiting on more studies to be produced before proceeding further with it. [[Washington Post / Max Bearak, William Booth, and Lesley Wroughton](] - The Johnson & Johnson vaccine proved to be 57 percent effective in South Africa in early trials, giving the country’s minister of health confidence in its ability to deter the variant and make those cases less severe. [[The Hill / Jordan Williams](] - But South African health care workers express anxiety amid the sudden cancellation of the AstraZeneca vaccine. The country, which just passed its second wave peak, has the highest death toll on the African continent. [[BBC News / Pumza Fihlani]]( - Another problem created by the shift in vaccine strategy is what to do with the AstraZeneca doses South Africa has already acquired — 1.5 million of which have already arrived or are en route. Health officials are exploring selling the vaccine or swapping it through the Covax or African Union program. [[Reuters / Alexander Winning and Wendell Roelf](] MISCELLANEOUS In Georgia’s Fulton County, prosecutors are opening a criminal investigation into former President Trump’s attempts to overturn the election results. [[NYT / Richard Fausset and Danny Hakim](] - After the release of the New York Times’s Framing Britney Spears documentary, fans of the singer are demanding Justin Timberlake apologize for his misogynistic treatment of her after their 2002 breakup. [[BuzzFeed News / Ellie Woodward](] - The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has released new guidance that suggests double-masking reduces the risk of contracting Covid-19. [[WSJ / Betsy McKay](] - Products formerly sold under the Aunt Jemima brand will be rebranded as Pearl Milling Company, following the manufacturer's reckoning with the racist roots of the original branding. [[Washington Post / Emily Heil](] [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( VERBATIM "Donald Trump committed a massive crime against our Constitution and our people, and the worst violation of the presidential oath of office in the history of the United States of America. For this, he was impeached...and he must be convicted." [[The pro-Trump editorial board of the New York Post in an editorial calling for Trump to drop his efforts to overturn the election results / NY Post](] LISTEN TO THIS [How cops became Hollywood's heroes]( Vox culture writer Constance Grady explains why TV shows like Dragnet, Law & Order, Hawaii Five-0, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine always seem to feature police as heroes. She explains how police consultants became the go-to for procedurals, the police archetypes that saturate pop culture, and how cop shows are pivoting for 2021. [[Spotify / Constance Grady](] [Read more from Vox](#) [What teen investors learned from the GameStop frenzy]( [Abolish the debt ceiling]( [America's billionaire philanthropists gave away more during the pandemic. But there's a catch.]( [12 movies that everyone will be talking about this year]( [Biden wants America to trust the process again]( [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [YouTube]( This email was sent to {EMAIL}. 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