TRUMP CORRUPTION INDEX

This Week in Trumpland Corruption: Capitol Crimes

Trump faces blowback after he incited a mob to storm the Capitol, and even loyalists doubt he can self-pardon his way out of this one

Is there enough graft, double-dealing, and self-interested chicanery in the Trump administration to publish this column every week? Only time — and Trump — will tell. (But we feel pretty confident.) Presenting this week’s installment of the Trump Corruption Index.

Impeachment round 2

House Democrats are planning to vote on Wednesday to once again impeach President Trump, this time for his role in inciting an insurrection at the Capitol last week, where rioters killed a Capitol Police officer. Unlike the last go-round, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is reportedly quite pleased that Democrats are trying to impeach the president, telling colleagues he hopes it helps to finally rid the party of Trump. McConnell’s comments underscore the GOP’s growing disillusionment with the president: Up to a dozen House Republicans are expected to vote to impeach Trump. Still, it appears unlikely that the Senate would vote to impeach Trump, both because it may not get the required two-thirds vote and because it’s unclear whether the current Senate will even hold a trial for a by-then-former president. That said, a soon-to-be-Democrat-controlled Senate might still hold a separate, simple-majority vote to bar Trump from ever seeking office again. The House impeachment vote follows House Democrats’ failed efforts to urge Vice President Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment and, in concert with a majority of Cabinet officials, seek to remove Trump from office. Meanwhile, CNN reports that Trump’s advisers and attorneys are pressing him to more strongly condemn the violence at the Capitol in order to diminish his legal liability for the attack that took place last week.

• Corrupt-o-meter (out of a possible five emojis): 💣💣⚖️⚖️⚖️

Putting a muzzle on journalism

Patsy Widakuswara, the White House reporter for Voice of America was reassigned to a different beat after she asked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday whether…