Forty-five Republican senators in the U.S. Senate voted Tuesday (Jan. 26) in favor of dismissing the second impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump (R-Texas). Some senators said the impeachment case had been shot down.
The vote is seen as Republicans testing the waters for February’s impeachment, with a strong possibility that Democrats will not get enough votes to convict Trump.
Republican Senator Rand Paul’s (R-KY) motion to impeach the former president for violating constitutional procedures, filed Tuesday afternoon, called for a vote on the constitutionality of the impeachment trial now that Trump has left office.
Then, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, called for a vote to “table” Paul’s motion, which ultimately passed the full House by a 55 to 45 vote.
Paul’s procedural motions were opposed by Democrats en masse, with five other Republicans falling in line, but 45 Republicans, including Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, voted against the motion.
The move suggests that Democrats have no way to get at least 17 votes from within the Republican Party to support a conviction, and that the Senate is unlikely to convict former President Trump with more than two-thirds (67 votes) of the votes cast in February’s impeachment case.
The five Republicans who joined the Democrats in opposing the procedural motion include Susan Collin of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah, Ben Sasse of Nebraska and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania. Pat Toomey (R-PA).
Paul tweeted after the vote that the 45 votes meant the impeachment trial in the Senate was dead. He wrote, “45 Senators agree that this sham ‘trial’ is unconstitutional; it’s more than the number of votes needed to acquit and finally end this partisan impeachment process. This so-called ‘trial’ is a dead end in the Senate.”
Convicting former President Trump requires getting at least 67 votes, which means no more than 33 Republicans can vote against it. Tuesday’s 45 votes against already far exceeded the number of votes needed for impeachment.
Earlier Tuesday, Paul said the day’s Senate vote would show that impeaching Trump “is basically a waste of Time” because now Trump has left office.
Paul questioned: just use the word fight to be sent to jail?
Trump would be the first former president to undergo an impeachment trial after leaving office, which the Senate says they have done for outgoing cabinet officials.
Paul criticized before Tuesday’s vote that Democrats have an inexplicable hatred for Trump. He said, “If we’re trying to put every politician in jail, then are we going to impeach every politician who metaphorically used the word ‘fight’ in a speech? It’s a disgrace.”
While some Republican senators have said they are waiting to hear arguments during the trial, a growing number have said they believe the impeachment trial, which began in February, is unconstitutional.
Jonathan Turley, a professor who was invited to join the House and provided legal advice for the first impeachment of Trump, attended a closed-door luncheon for Republican lawmakers on Tuesday.
Schumer: Accountability is the only way to heal the problem Continue to push for a trial
Democrats, for their part, blasted the Republican push to make the Trump impeachment trial unconstitutional, arguing that Republicans are trying to avoid making a decision on whether Trump’s comments meet the standards for conviction.
“Some of my Republican colleagues have seized on a fringe legal theory that the Senate has no constitutional authority to conduct a trial because Trump is no longer in office,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Tuesday.
He said the argument “defies precedent, historical practice and basic common sense.
In a media interview Monday, he said of the Trump impeachment: “Look, everybody wants to put this terrible chapter in American history behind us. But sweeping it under the rug (to hide the problem) won’t bring healing. The only way to bring healing is real accountability, and this inquest provides that opportunity. So we will continue with the inquest.”
Impeachment expected to go ahead as scheduled
But the impeachment trial is expected to proceed as scheduled. Senators were sworn in Tuesday to serve as jurors during the impeachment trial, which will actually begin on Feb. 8. Senator Patrick Leahy, the Senate’s most senior Democrat and speaker pro tempore, will preside over the trial.
However, Leahy, 80, was taken to the hospital Tuesday because he was not feeling well.
In a statement issued Tuesday night, his spokesman said, “Out of an abundance of caution, the attending physician recommended that he be taken to a local hospital for observation, where he is now and will be diagnosed.”
Around 8:40 p.m. Tuesday, Leahy’s spokesman updated the message to say that Leahy had been thoroughly examined and returned Home from the hospital after getting his test results. “He is looking forward to returning to work, and Leahy and his wife Marcelle are very grateful for the well wishes they received tonight.” The update said.
Leahy announced earlier Monday that he will preside over the upcoming trial of Trump.
“In presiding over the impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump, I will not waver from my sworn constitutional obligation to conduct a fair trial in accordance with the Constitution and the law.” Leahy’s statement said.
Recent Comments