Former President Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial has come to a close, with the Senate electing to acquit Trump despite the insurrection that took place at the U.S Capitol on January 6th, 2021. Despite being the only U.S President to be impeached twice, Trump has emerged from his time in the White House without a guilty conviction. This past impeachment resulted in the most bipartisan impeachment vote in the history of the United States; however, it was still too little to meet the minimum required vote of two-thirds. Senator Mitch Mcconnel claimed that it is merely unconstitutional to impeach and convict a president who is no longer in office. This technicality will not be enough to save Trump from the several lawsuits that have been filed against him due to the January 6th riots as well the New York investigation into his tax returns. This means that after narrowly escaping his second impeachment trial, the former President may be convicted of tax evasion.

In May of 2020, the Supreme Court rejected Trump’s appeal to block his tax returns from being subpoenaed by the house of representatives. This case did not ultimately settle the issue of Trump and his taxes as there is still discrepancy on what protections a former President has once relieved from their presidential duties. According to Bloomberg News, The Trump Legal Team is planning to argue that Donald Trump is still protected under the Constitution and cannot be charged with any criminal offense regarding his tax returns. The Democrats in the House of Representatives are not providing this defense any merit as the House has officially reissued the subpoena for Trump’s tax returns and are demanding that they be investigated. The tax returns have been presented to Attorney Cyrus Vance, the Manhatten District Attorney. A criminal charge would prevent Trump from an expected 2024 campaign, which he discussed at CPAC this past week. 

In Trump’s CPAC speech, he stated that he has no intentions to form a third party and that he will continue his membership for the Republican Party. These remarks came after speculation that Trump might leave the GOP due to his fallowing of ever-loyal supporters and the backlash he received from several Republican lawmakers after January 6th. Trump now faces more than backlash from his constituents regarding his behavior during and leading up to the capital riots, as Democratic representative Eric Swalwell of California filed a lawsuit against the former president. Swalwell claims that the then-acting President incited the events at the capitol and poses future threats of inciting a political insurrection. Along with Donald Trump, the lawsuit will also go after Donald Trump Jr., Representative of Alabama Mo Brooks, and Rudy Giuliani. The Washington Post claims that Donald Trump’s spokesman Jason Miller refuted the lawsuit’s validity by stating, “Eric Swalwell is a low-life with no credibility.”   

The next several months will have massive implications for the 2024 election. Trump may once again emerge unscathed by legal battles or might be convicted and deemed unable to run for office in the next election.