Did the senate meet to impeach Donald trump for treason
Executive summary
The Senate did convene twice to try Donald J. Trump on articles of impeachment brought by the House, most recently in February 2021, but neither Senate proceeding accused him of the constitutional crime of treason; the second trial charged "incitement of insurrection" and the first charged abuse of power and obstruction, and both ended without conviction [1] [2] [3].
1. What the Constitution requires versus what the Senate actually did
The Constitution assigns the House the sole power to impeach and the Senate the sole power to try impeachments, and it lists treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors as examples of offenses that can lead to removal from office; however, the House—not the Senate—frames the articles of impeachment, and in Trump’s two impeachments the articles were not framed as treason but as abuse of power/obstruction (first) and incitement of insurrection (second), which the Senate then heard in trial form [4] [2] [1].
2. The Senate met and held trials, but not for treason
The Senate convened for the second impeachment trial from February 9–13, 2021, with the chamber conducting evidentiary and argument sessions and ultimately voting on the single article of "incitement of insurrection"; the official record and multiple contemporary accounts document the trial dates and the vote on February 13, 2021, resulting in acquittal [1] [5] [3].
3. Why some confusion arises around the word "treason"
Coverage and legal commentary often invoke the term "treason" because the Constitution names it alongside other removable offenses, and several senators during debate referenced the constitutional standard in arguing whether the conduct alleged rose to the gravest categories of misconduct; but those references are rhetorical or constitutional-contextual, not indications that the House charged Trump with treason, which it did not [6] [7].
4. The outcome: acquittal, and the vote math that matters
In the February 2021 trial the Senate voted 57–43 to convict on the incitement article—falling short of the two‑thirds majority required for conviction—so the Senate did meet and vote, but it did not convict or remove Trump, nor was there a treason charge pursued in the articles [3] [8] [1].
5. Disputes over jurisdiction and alternative legal theories
Republican senators and legal advocates repeatedly argued it was unconstitutional to try a former president at all—forcing procedural votes and debate at the trial’s outset—while proponents cited precedent and the Senate’s historical actions (e.g., Belknap) and the House’s request for possible disqualification from future office to justify proceeding; that jurisdictional dispute complicated the trial but did not change the nature of the charge, which remained incitement rather than treason [9] [10].
6. What reporting and the record do—and don’t—show
Official documents, the House resolution text, Senate roll calls, and government archival collections make clear the articles and proceedings; they also show that while "treason" is part of the constitutional lexicon invoked in debate, it was not the operative charge the House filed and the Senate tried in either of Trump’s two impeachments [2] [11] [1]. If the question is whether the Senate convened to try Trump for treason specifically, the record does not support that assertion—Senate trials occurred, but for other named offenses [2] [1].