THIS Wednesday Joe Biden will be sworn in as the 46th president of the United States, while Kamala Harris will assume office as the 49th vice-president.

As Wednesdays go, Americans have just had two consecutive ones that shocked and rocked their country to its foundations.

On Wednesday January 6, we witnessed the terrifying spectacle of Donald Trump, his family and personal lawyer inciting an armed mob to storm the Capitol building in Washington D.C.

It was the execution of an insurrection against the constitution, election and US system of government.

Upon reflection, this shouldn’t have surprised anyone. Trump had been perpetuating the bare-faced lie and fraud for months that the 2020 election was being stolen from him. He lost the election fair and square. At last count, 60 or so of his legal challenges to state ballots were kicked out of court for want of credibility or evidence.

The insanity of Trump’s fraud on the US constitution was a tyrannical belief that he could somehow stop Congress certifying electoral college votes on January 6 through violence and intimidation. In reality, his army of thugs only delayed the count by a matter of hours.

Last Wednesday, Trump was impeached by the US House of Representatives for high crimes and misdemeanours in his incitement of seditious acts. All of which he continues to deny despite evidence to the contrary coming out of his mouth and being broadcast on television. He is the only US president in history to be impeached twice.

For me what was astonishing about last Wednesday wasn’t the fact Trump was impeached again, but the sheer number of Republican House representatives who stood up to defend his indefensible behaviour. While many did so through fear for their own political skins – and some fearing for their lives and safety – this only confirms that Trump’s toxic legacy will take a long time to expunge.

His legacy as president will be a grubby litany of lies and political fraud. A climate change denier. A Covid-19 pandemic liar. A monstrous man with less moral fibre than a mafia mob boss. History teaches us that the bigger the lie, the bigger the prize and the easier it can be to con people.

Back in 193 AD, the praetorian guard assassinated Emperor Pertinax and tried to sell the Roman Empire to the highest bidder. As frauds go, this was a biggie. Julianus came up with a staggering amount of gold but was quickly deposed along with his false claim to the throne.

Other great con artists in history include George C Parker who’d “sell” various New York icons including the Brooklyn Bridge; and Victor Lustig who famously “sold” the Eiffel Tower twice. Scotland had its own top fraudster in the 19th century. Gregor MacGregor invented the

made-up island of Poyais and sold fictitious property on his fake island and even traded in its phoney currency.

Trump didn’t just trade in lies for the sake of power and wealth. His attack on Mexico and claims that Mexican immigrants were all essentially criminals or rapists were central to his early days in office. His attack on Muslims. Latterly his attack on Chinese people as the scapegoat for Covid-19. The list is endless.

In the UK, we witnessed similar blame games and lies during the ugly Brexit referendum. Stoking racism by falsely blaming all of our failures and woes on the European Union or foreigners. You reap what you sow, and make no mistake, the UK with its own “Britain Trump” is slowly learning how you get the government you deserve.

The 21st century has one component that is different to past historical frauds and cons. The power of mass communication through social media has been novel, brutal and devastating. The ability to manipulate and target people with fraudulent claims through access to their personal data is perhaps the greatest threat to our democracy at present.

It is now indisputable this played a massive role with Russian Federation interference in the 2016 US elections, as well as the 2016 UK Brexit referendum. Social media giants provided a worldwide megaphone that enabled Trump to tell his lies with impunity for the last four years.

Following the US insurrection this month, many tech giants – such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and others – have either suspended or blocked content from Donald Trump and others propagating falsehoods and continuing the attack on US elections.

Is it too little, too late? Unquestionably. Is it a denial of free speech? No. Trump was able to conquer America because social media platforms gave him a free pass to disseminate hate and lies every single day.