Schiff asked what has changed since past impeachments, wherein we at least heard evidence. “We have changed,” he replied, only partially correct. The Republican Party has changed, not only by degree and not only in policy positions from free trade to Russian policy to the rule of law.

Schiff aptly diagnosed the problem with leaving Trump in office. “He has betrayed our national security, and he will do so again,” Schiff said. “He has compromised our elections, and he will do so again. You will not change him. You cannot constrain him. He is who he is. Truth matters little to him. What’s right matters even less, and decency matters not at all.”

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So far so good. Schiff, as would be required of any advocate, then made a plea to the Senate, asserting, “I do not ask you to convict him because truth or right or decency matters nothing to him, but because we have proven our case, and it matters to you. Truth matters to you. Right matters to you. You are decent. He is not who you are.”

Sadly, I think he is dead wrong. When Republican Sens. Joni Ernst (Iowa), Marco Rubio (Fla.), Lamar Alexander (Tenn.) and the rest put out gobbledygook explanations for their votes to deny evidence and for their intent to acquit, they are not dumb; they are lacking conscience and a modicum of courage. Senate Republicans think their seats, their position of power, their earning potential, their friendships and their futures require them to align themselves with Trump. Jettisoning all that to do the right thing and vindicate truth and decency is unimaginable.

Simply put, their entire self-worth and career aspirations depend upon staying firmly within the cult. These are not inner-directed people, needless to say.

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Schiff insisted, “History will not be kind to Donald Trump. If you find that the House has proved its case and still vote to acquit, your name will be tied to his with a cord of steel and for all of history. But if you find the courage to stand up to him . . . your place will be among the Davids who took on Goliath.”

Alas, he is appealing to Republicans’ conscience and sense of history, both of which have been shoved aside in favor of one all-encompassing principle: Do not cross Trump. With Trump they hope to find reelection and, if not security, in the right-wing machine manned by think tanks, lobbyists and advocacy groups. With Trump they hope to avoid vilification by unruly and hostile MAGA voters back home. With Trump they hope to avoid unpleasantness with staff and colleagues whose careers demand they stay loyal to the party. These are fragile men and women whose self-worth comes not from doing the right thing but by maintaining their power in the most important job they are ever to have — and by maintaining their place in a right-wing cult from which they dare not be ejected.

At times like this, you really miss the late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), for whom conscience, honor, truth and decency were as essential as oxygen. These values sustained him in his darkest hours. If he did not abandon them under unimaginable duress and pain, he was never going to give them away for the sake of a slap on the back by a president.

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Term limits are not the solution to character deficit within the Republican Party. These people are motivated as much by praise from right-wing media and lobbying jobs as by the next election. No, the only thing these people understand is losing, and losing badly. They and the Republicans who will try to replace them in 2022 and beyond will only reconsider their survival plan if it no longer allows them to survive. It is only when divorcing themselves from truth, justice and decency leads to their political obliteration that we will see significant improvement.