Impeachment trial: Harrowing footage and Trump’s rhetoric take centre stage

To reconstruct the siege for senators, Democrats aired never-before-seen security footage from inside the US Capitol that showed the attack unfolding.

Security video is shown to senators at the second impeachment trial of former president Donald Trump in the Senate at the US Capitol in Washington (Senate Television via AP)

By Jill Colvin, Associated Press

Democrats opened their first day of arguments in former president Donald Trump’s impeachment trial with searing footage of the US Capitol riot.

They painted Mr Trump as an “inciter in chief” who systematically riled up his supporters and falsely convinced them the election had been stolen, culminating in the deadly attack.