'A powder keg waiting to blow': Impeachment managers show how Trump directly incited Capitol mob

Former President Donald Trump was impeached last month on the charge of inciting a violent insurrection against the United States Congress, and now House impeachment managers have delivered a pre-trial brief to the Senate outlining exactly why he deserves to be convicted.

In excerpts of the brief published by CNN, the impeachment managers argue that the former president's actions "directly threatened the very foundation on which all other political debates and disagreements unfold" and "also threatened the constitutional system that protects the fundamental freedoms we cherish."

The managers then documented how Trump progressively escalated his menacing rhetoric ahead of and during the January 6th rally that would subsequently lead to the Capitol building riots.

"Even as he continued improperly pressuring state officials, DOJ, and Members of Congress to overturn the electoral outcome, he sharply escalated his public statements, using more incendiary and violent language to urge supporters to 'stop the steal' on January 6," they write. "He insisted that the election had been 'rigged' and 'stolen,' and that his followers had to 'fight like hell' and 'fight to the death' against this 'act of war,' since they 'can't let it happen' and 'won't take it anymore!'"

The managers argued that "these statements turned his 'wild' rally on January 6 into a powder keg waiting to blow."

Read more excerpts of the managers' brief here.