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Rand Paul declares Trump impeachment trial ‘dead on arrival’ after 45 GOP senators vote against it
U.S. Sen. Rand Paul declared former President Trump’s Senate impeachment trial "dead on arrival" on Tuesday after 45 Senate Republicans voted against holding the proceeding, viewing it as unconstitutional.

Rand, a Kentucky Republican, had called for a procedural vote regarding holding a trial, claiming the Senate shouldn’t address the article of impeachment against Trump filed by the House this month because Trump is now out of office.

If a trial were to proceed, Trump would become the first former president to face an impeachment trial. The House charged Trump on Jan. 13 with "inciting an insurrection" in connection with the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol in Washington.

In Paul’s view, the votes of 45 Republicans against holding a trial proved his point – and likely rendered any upcoming trial to be moot.

"If you voted that it was unconstitutional, how in the world would you ever vote to convict somebody for this?" Paul told reporters after the vote, according to Politico. "This vote indicates it’s over. The trial is all over." CLICK HERE FOR MORE ON OUR TOP STORY.

In other developments:
- Forty-five Republicans vote against proceeding with Senate impeachment trial
- Cruz: Second Trump impeachment was 'exercise in political rage' by Democrats: 'It was their id speaking'
- Rubio doubles down on criticism of Trump impeachment trial: 'It's not even constitutional'
- Graham warns Dems will ‘blow up’ Senate by moving forward with impeachment trial, calling witnesses
- Hannity: 'Irrational psychotic rage' driving Dems' 'dead in the water' impeachment push
- Jonathan Turley, professor who called Trump impeachment trial unconstitutional, to attend Senate GOP luncheon

Tulsi Gabbard doubles down, compares Schiff, Brennan to 'domestic terrorists'
Former U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, asserted on social media Tuesday that Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and former CIA Director John Brennan should be considered "domestic enemies" of the U.S.

In a video, Gabbard deemed the Democrats a greater danger to the country than the rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol building on Jan. 6.

Gabbard then doubled down on her comments on "Tucker Carlson Tonight" on Tuesday night, denouncing the rioters but warning of government efforts to combat domestic insurgents through surveillance and other monitoring activities.

"Those like John Brennan, Adam Schiff and others are also acting as domestic terrorists because they are also undermining our Constitution by trying to take away our civil liberties and rights that are guaranteed to us," she added.

Gabbard pointed to a video of Brennan telling MSNBC that Biden’s nominees and appointees "are now moving in laser-like fashion to try to uncover as much as they can" regarding activities that he said were reminiscent of "insurgency movements" that have risen up in other countries.

In the same interview, Brennan likened libertarians to "religious extremists, authoritarians, fascists, bigots, racists, [and] nativists." CLICK HERE FOR MORE.

In other developments:
- Kentucky man charged in Capitol siege was 2019 'sexy farmer'
- Pennsylvania woman accused of stealing Pelosi laptop during Capitol riot covering tracks online: DOJ
- 'Stop the Steal' speaker seen on video in Capitol riots arrested

Biden credits Trump on vaccine effort: 'That credit is absolutely due'
President Biden on Tuesday gave credit to former President Donald Trump’s administration for its role in getting the coronavirus vaccination process off the ground, before criticizing it over a lack of transparency.

During a briefing on his administration’s efforts to fight the COVID-19 crisis, Biden said credit was "absolutely due" to the Trump administration, as well as the medical and scientific communities.

"We want to give credit to everyone involved in this vaccine effort and the prior administration and the science community and the medical sphere … for getting the program off the ground," Biden said during a news conference Tuesday. "That credit is absolutely due."

Biden quickly added, however, that in the final days of the transition his team discovered "the vaccine program [was] in worse shape than we anticipated or expected."

Biden alluded to a lack of cooperation from the former administration. CLICK HERE FOR MORE.

In other developments:
- Cuomo says Biden vaccine ramp up 'not enough' for New York
- Biden says masks 'best defense' against coronavirus even as vaccination campaign ramps up
- Psaki walks back Biden comments on COVID-19 vaccine availability, says won't be widely available by spring
- Biden hopes for 1.5 million COVID vaccinations per day, after 'nothing we can do' comments

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TODAY'S MUST-READS:
- Newsweek retroactively edits 2015 Army Ranger report to support Salon hit piece on Tom Cotton
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- Federal judge blocks Biden’s 100-day moratorium on deportations
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#The Flashback: CLICK HERE to find out what happened on "This Day in History."

SOME PARTING WORDS

Tucker Carlson accused Big Tech and the mainstream media of silencing their political enemies on Tuesday night’s edition of "Tucker Carlson Tonight."

"Never in American history has there been press censorship on this scale," Carlson said, adding "Fox News is the last significant media organization in this country that allows its employees to tell obvious truths in public. The rest of them have been muzzled or shut down completely. The last to go was the free-speech site Parler, which was created as an alternative to Silicon Valley monopolies like Twitter and Facebook. A few weeks ago those very same monopolies pulled it right off the internet."

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