Donald Trump impeachment:  Conviction in Senate unlikely as ex-president proves too popular to purge

Pelosi's quick action prevents the Republicans slow-walking the trial

Credit: BLOOMBERG

To that end, Mr McConnell proposed delaying the start of the trial until the middle of February, so Mr Trump’s nascent legal team could come up with more time-consuming defence strategies.

Ms Pelosi’s decision will undermine Republican attempts to slow-walk the trial. And it also shows that the prospect of unity breaking out in the new Congress is not high.

It initially seemed quite possible that Mr Trump would be convicted for incitement of insurrection. It would take 17 of the 50 Republican senators to join Democrats to do so. But now, noises emanating from Congress suggest only half a dozen Republicans will take the plunge.

That in itself makes it less likely Mr McConnell himself will vote to convict. He never likes being on the losing side.

Another important factor for Republican senators has been that Mr Trump declined to pardon any of his supporters who attacked the Capitol, and ultimately issued an unequivocal condemnation of the events.

But mostly, they are coming to the realisation that the Republican Party still needs Mr Trump, and his supporters.

One poll this week showed his approval rating among Republican voters up three points to 79 per cent. That is not the heady heights of his presidency, when he was in the 90s, but cannot be ignored by party leaders.

Among Republican voters who say their primary loyalty is to Mr Trump, his approval rating is 98 per cent.

Mr Trump’s "base" is clearly going nowhere.

To have any chance in 2022, the party needs to handle him carefully. Convicting him would lose them the voters they need. Mr McConnell, who in the wake of the riots wanted to "purge" Mr Trump from the party, is having to change tack.