Following the presentation of evidence in President Trump’s Senate trial, Senator Susan Collins argued that the president did not need to be removed from office because he has learned a “pretty big lesson” from his impeachment. The president did in fact learn lessons from his impeachment and acquittal, but all the wrong lessons, which he since has been applying in misleading the American people about the catastrophic pandemic, and exacerbating its devastating impact.

Mr. Trump was impeached because when confronted with an urgent crisis that threatened the security of our country — Russia’s hostile invasion of Ukraine — he put his personal and political interests over the interests of the country. He refused to protect the American people by releasing previously approved and desperately needed military aid for our vital ally unless that country agreed to help his re-election by announcing an investigation of his political rival Joe Biden.

While serving as special counsel to the House Judiciary Committee, I warned in my opening statement for the committee’s impeachment hearings that if the president got away with what he did, “our imagination is the only limit to what President Trump may do next.” Those concerns have unfortunately proved prescient, as the lesson Mr. Trump apparently learned from his Senate acquittal is that he could once again get away with putting his personal and political interests over the safety of the American people when confronted with an even more dire crisis.

The parallels are striking and, as with all recidivists, are particularly important for what they reveal about the president’s motives, intent and modus operandi. In other words, we have seen this movie before.