As Bad as it Sounds...

Yeah, it is as bad as it sounds.

McConnell persuaded his GOP Senators to keep their heads in the sand

I continue trying to wrap my head around what the GOP Senate heard in voting to acquit Trump in the impeachment trial:

1.The President of the United States withheld Congress- and Pentagon-approved funds from a desperate ally in its battle against Russian aggression, merely to solicit help for his 2020 campaign by coercing it into opening investigations against the Democratic party and his chief political opponent (specifically told beforehand by federal election commission chair Ellen Weintraub such an act would be illegal). 

2. Numerous US officials and departments expressed concern--alarm, actually--about the funding delay as a matter of defending US national security interests (found to be illegal by the non-partisan GAO).

3. Diplomatic and national security experts found Trump's ask of a favor at least grossly inappropriate, and possibly illegal.

4. The investigations--the Biden matter was never considered for investigation by the once-GOP-led House, and the Ukraine election interference was itself debunked by a Trump administration investigation in 2017--didn't even have to be conducted, just announced enough, it appears, to smear Trump's opponents.

5. Trump and his secret "corruption force" (led by-- intrepid do-gooders?--Rudy Giuliani and Lev Parnas) advocated for continued employment of an internationally-recognized corrupt Ukraine prosecutor while, at the same time, orchestrating a smear campaign to oust the US career diplomat who backed official US policy in the matter instead of Giuliani's wishes.

6. In addition to asking for Ukraine's help in smearing his 2020 opponent, Trump said he'd accept future such help if someone offered it--just as he would in asking China in 2019, and in the 2016 campaign, asking Russia. Establishing a pattern of his disregard for the law and ethics.

These are the facts. There really isn't any dispute. They're facts.

And the GOP Senators said, "This isn't so bad." And the GOP Senators said, "Other people did bad things, too!" And the GOP Senators (except for courageous Mitt Romney) said the facts weren't enough--and they refused to search for any more.

So, I still can't process what the GOP heard.

Because, yeah, it's as bad as it sounds.