Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.) on Thursday accused Trump allies of engaging in "cancel culture" by rushing to censure Republican lawmakers for voting to impeach or convict former President Trump for his role in the Capitol insurrection.

Why it matters: The comments by Thune, the No. 2 Republican in the Senate, underscore the growing divide between mainstream GOP leaders and Trump supporters, who still dominate the party's base. Thune called Trump's actions after the election "inexcusable" in an interview with the AP.

From campaigns to conventions, Donald Trump and his administration are reemerging in exile.

What's happening: Trump family members are weighing political races, a slate of former Cabinet members are set to speak at next week's CPAC meeting, and after laying low through his impeachment trial, Trump is vowing to battle Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to shape the GOP’s field for the 2022 midterms.

The Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey, was demolished with about 3,000 sticks of dynamite on Wednesday morning, more than three decades after it first opened and about five years after billionaire Carl Icahn acquired it out of bankruptcy.

Why it matters: It was one of the first three casinos former President Trump owned before his Atlantic City businesses went bankrupt, plagued by high debt and lagging revenue, according to the New York Times.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said on Fox News' "Hannity" Tuesday night that Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) was "indispensable to Donald Trump's success," after the former president unleashed a scathing statement attacking the Kentucky senator in highly personal terms.

Why it matters: Graham, one of Trump's closest allies in the Senate, said that both McConnell and the former president are essential to Republicans' chances of taking control of Congress in the 2022 midterm elections. The rift between the two most powerful leaders in the party threatens to permanently paralyze the GOP.

President Biden said during a CNN town hall Tuesday night that all of the living former presidents have called him, except one.

Driving the news: After confirming that he's yet to hear from former President Trump, Biden was asked about the Senate's acquittal of his predecessor. But he didn't take the bait.

• "I'm tired of talking about Donald Trump, don't want to talk about him anymore," he said.
• "For four years all that’s been in the news is Trump. In the next four years I want to make sure all the news is the American people."

Donald Trump went scorched earth on Sen. Mitch McConnell on Tuesday, releasing a long statement that hammered the GOP Senate leader in highly personal terms.

Why it matters: The blistering statement is vintage Trump, who frequently lashes out at critics. But it also shows the former president's attempt to remain atop the GOP power structure will mean tearing down every perceived internal obstacle.

Rep. Adam Kinzinger's (R-Ill.) family members sent him a handwritten letter in the days following the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, calling him "a disappointment" for saying President Trump should be removed from office, the New York Times reports.

Why it matters: The early admonishment highlights the political and personal risks now faced by Republicans who have spoken out against Trump. Most of the House Republicans who voted in favor of impeachment have been censured, a trend now happening among the Senate Republicans who broke party lines.

The NAACP filed a lawsuit Tuesday against former President Trump and far-right extremist groups in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol riots that killed five people and injured dozens of officers.

Why it matters: The federal lawsuit filed on behalf of House Homeland Security Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) shows that Trump continues to face legal problems stemming from the riot, even after he was acquitted in his Senate impeachment trial Saturday.

The North Carolina Republican Party announced Monday night that its members had voted unanimously to censure Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) for finding former President Trump guilty of inciting the Jan. 6 Capitol siege.

The big picture: Most of the House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump in January have been censured.

In this episode of How It Happened: Trump's Last Stand, national political correspondent Jonathan Swan tracks the unfolding of the Capitol insurrection on January 6, revealing what happened in the Senate and at the White House — and what it means.

• Swan brings listeners into the secure room where senators sheltered in place, heard remarks from both President Trump and President-Elect Biden, and deliberated how to resume the vote certification process.
• Swan also reports on the reaction inside the Trump administration, where officials were rapidly resigning, and the ones who remained were strenuously pressuring the president to discourage and disavow the mob of his supporters.