Trump's second impeachment trial: the key players

67 senators are needed for a guilty verdict and conviction after House charged Trump with incitement of insurrection'

The US Senate is set to formally begin its second impeachment trial of Donald Trump on Tuesday on charges that he helped incite a riot at the Capitol on 6 January. The formal article of impeachment is a charge of incitement of insurrection that the US House approved, with support from 10 Republicans, earlier this month.

Trump is the first US president to face an impeachment trial after leaving office and the votes of 67 senators are needed for a guilty verdict and conviction. Trump abruptly hired a new legal team less than two weeks before his impeachment trial was set to begin. He parted ways with Butch Bowers, a well-known South Carolina lawyer who was set to lead his defense. There are reports the breakup was over strategy and legal fees. Trump's new lawyers have filed a flimsy 14-page brief arguing Trump cannot be impeached because he has already left office and was not responsible for inciting violence at the Capitol. Trump told supporters they needed to fight like hell" before the riot.