在唐纳德·特朗普s秒弹劾前总统的法律团队和共和党人提出的一个核心论点是，审判是违宪的，因为特朗普不再执政。
但在推动连任的竞选集会上，特朗普本人多次将目标对准前总统巴拉克·奥巴马他呼吁弹劾他的前任，尽管他已经卸任多年，甚至开玩笑说“弹劾姗姗来迟”。
周二，在特朗普第二次弹劾审判的第一天，律师大卫·舍恩(David Schoen)在参议院进行辩论，有力地辩称审判违宪。
“总统是可以弹劾的，因为总统是可以罢免的。前任总统不是，因为他们不能被免职。宪法是明确的，”舍恩说。参议院作为弹劾法庭进行的审判是为美国总统保留的，而不是为曾经是美国总统的普通公民保留的
在审判前2月2日提交的一份简报中，特朗普新任命的法律团队表示，审判是违宪的:“由于第45任总统不再是‘总统’，该条款‘应在弹劾时被撤职’，原因是……”是不可能的。"
更多:关于特朗普的第二次弹劾审判，你需要知道什么，如何观看
这一论点也成为共和党人的一个核心主题，也是一种关注审判过程、避免讨论特朗普是否犯下与国会袭击有关的可弹劾罪行的方法。上个月，45名共和党参议员投票驳回了审判，理由是特朗普不再担任总统，包括参议院多数党领袖米奇·麦康奈尔(Mitch McConnell)，他说特朗普“煽动”了袭击国会大厦的暴徒。
特朗普因涉嫌向乌克兰施加压力，诽谤政治对手而面临首次弹劾审判，他在全国各地的多次集会上抨击奥巴马，呼吁弹劾这位前总统，因为他承诺“你可以留着你的医生”——指的是《平价医疗法案》——尽管他几年前就离职了。
国会投票弹劾特朗普的当晚，2019年12月18日，特朗普在密歇根州巴特尔克里克的一次竞选集会上首次呼吁弹劾这位前总统。
“还记得奥巴马吗，28次？你可以有你的医生，你可以有你的计划。事情不是那样发展的，是吗？我认为我们应该为此弹劾他。让我们弹劾他。为了那个，为了国税局的丑闻，为了枪？还记得枪吗？"特朗普在拥挤的集会上说。"弹劾他。"
2020年2月初在参议院被判无罪后，特朗普在2月20日科罗拉多州科罗拉多斯普林斯的一次集会上再次呼吁弹劾奥巴马，称:“我们应该弹劾他。我们应该弹劾他。弹劾奥巴马。”
几天后，这位前总统在南卡罗来纳州北查尔斯顿的一次集会上发表了类似的声明，然后在同一个月晚些时候，在拉斯维加斯的一次集会上，特朗普呼吁对奥巴马进行“迟来的弹劾”，然后收回评论，说这是个笑话。
“还记得奥巴马总统吗？他说，‘你可以保留你的医生，保留你的计划。’他撒谎了。所以我们应该弹劾他。我们应该弹劾他。我们要弹劾他。特朗普说:“我们将进行迟来的弹劾。”我们将进行迟来的弹劾。"
特朗普在提到媒体时说:“当你说‘弹劾’时，你必须非常小心，因为他们会回去写。”“我开玩笑的好不好？”
特朗普的代表没有回应就此事置评的请求。
在周二的审判开始时，民主党众议员大卫·西奇林(David Cicilline)对特朗普前法律团队预期的一些论点进行了预反驳，包括审判现在违宪的说法。
“这位前总统曾在《圣经》上承诺忠实地使用他的权力，他可以也应该对自己在执政期间是否信守承诺负责，”西西林说。“他的坚持否则就是错误的。他声称，如果继续下去，弹劾普通公民的道路会越来越滑。
Trump's lawyers say he's no longer 'impeachable.' Trump called for impeaching Obama in 2020.
At Donald Trump's second impeachment trial, a core argument made by the former president's legal team, and by Republicans, is that the trial is unconstitutional because Trump is no longer in office.
But at campaign rallies amid his reelection push, Trump himself repeatedly targeted former President Barack Obama, calling for his predecessor to be impeached despite being out of office for years, even joking about a "belated impeachment."
Arguing on the Senate floor on Tuesday during the first day of Trump's second impeachment trial, lawyer David Schoen forcefully argued that the trial was unconstitutional.
"Presidents are impeachable because presidents are removable. Former presidents are not, because they cannot be removed. The Constitution is clear," Schoen said. "Trial by the Senate sitting as a court of impeachment is reserved for the president of the United States, not a private citizen who used to be president of the United States."
In a brief submitted on Feb. 2 ahead of the trial, Trump's newly appointed legal team stated the trial is unconstitutional: "Since the 45th President is no longer 'President,' the clause 'shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for ...' is impossible."
MORE: What you need to know about Trump's 2nd impeachment trial and how to watch
The argument also has emerged as a central theme for Republicans and a way to focus on the process of the trial and avoid addressing whether or not Trump committed impeachable offenses tied to the Capitol attack. Last month, 45 Republican senators voted to dismiss the trial as unconstitutional on the grounds Trump is no longer president, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who said Trump "provoked" the mob that attacked the Capitol.
Facing his first impeachment trial for allegedly pressuring Ukraine for dirt on political opponents, Trump lashed out at Obama at multiple rallies around the country, calling for the former president to be impeached for promising "you can keep your doctor" -- referring to the Affordable Care Act -- despite having left office years earlier.
The night Congress voted to impeach Trump, Dec. 18, 2019, Trump first called for the former president to be impeached at a campaign rally in Battle Creek, Michigan.
"Remember Obama, 28 times? 'You can have your doctor, you can have your plan.' It did not work out that way, did it? I think we should impeach him for that. Let's impeach him. For that, for the IRS scandal, for the guns? Remember the guns?" Trump said at the packed rally. "Impeach him."
After being acquitted in the Senate in early February 2020, Trump again called for Obama to be impeached at a rally on Feb. 20 in Colorado Springs, Colorado, saying: "We should impeach him. We should impeach him. Impeach Obama."
The former president made similar statements a few days later at a rally in North Charleston, South Carolina, and then later that same month, at a rally in Las Vegas, Trump called for a "belated impeachment" of Obama before walking back the comment and saying it was a joke.
"Remember President Obama? He said, 'You can keep your doctor, keep your plan.' He lied. So we should impeach him. We should impeach him. We are going to impeach him. We will do a belated impeachment," Trump said. "We will do a belated impeachment."
"You have to be very careful when you say 'impeachment' because they go back and they write," Trump said, referring to the media. "I'm just kidding, OK?"
Representatives for Trump didn't respond to requests for comment on this story.
At the start of Tuesday's trial, Rep. David Cicilline, D-R.I., offered a pre-rebuttal for some arguments anticipated from former Trump's legal team, including the claim that the trial is now unconstitutional.
"The former president who promised on a Bible to use his power faithfully can and should answer for whether he kept that promise while bound by it in office," Cicilline said. "His insistence otherwise is just wrong. And so is his claim that there's a slippery slope to impeaching private citizens if you proceed."
