Reprinted with permission from American Independent

The likelihood that Donald Trump will become the first president in American history to be impeached twice is growing, as more and more House Democrats voice support for the effort to punish and remove Trump from office following the shocking mob attack on the U.S. Capitol that he incited, which has now left five people dead, including a Capitol Police officer.

The number of House Democrats supporting impeachment now stands at 158, according to a tally compiled jointly by Daily Kos Elections and the American Independent Foundation, a number that skyrocketed over the past 24 hours and continues to grow.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who decides what makes it to the House floor for a vote, is on board with impeaching and removing Trump, saying at a news conference on Thursday that the president is "a very dangerous man" who incited "an armed insurrection against America."

"While it's only 13 days left, any day could be a horror show for America," Pelosi said, her voice laced with anger as she stressed the urgency for Trump's removal.

House Democrats will hold a conference call at noon on Friday to discuss the path forward, Punchbowl News' Jake Sherman reported.

The question remains whether enough Senate Republicans would vote to convict and remove Trump from office, a punishment that requires a two-thirds vote.

Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE) said he would "definitely consider" impeachment, saying he believes Trump "disregarded his oath of office," but he has not fully committed to it yet.

Trump finally conceded defeat late Thursday in a video posted to Twitter that was laced with lies and a bizarre remark to his supporters at the end that "our incredible journey is only just beginning."

The concession took 61 days after the media called the race for President-elect Joe Biden, and came only as members of his staff and other Republican elected officials began throwing him under the bus for Wednesday's violent and deadly terrorist attack.

Of course, those same aides and GOP lawmakers did not accept responsibility for their own role in fomenting the rage that led to Wednesday's events, which will go down as one of the most shameful moments in American history. Trump surrogates and Republican lawmakers lied for two months now about voter fraud, backing up Trump's effort to get judges to steal the election for Trump — an effort that failed in spectacular fashion.

"The president's language and rhetoric often goes too far. I think, yesterday in particular, the president's language and rhetoric crossed the line and it was reckless," Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said on a local television station on Thursday, taking no responsibility for the fact that he, too, lied to Trump supporters about a stolen election and led the charge to try to overturn Trump's rightful loss.

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.