U.S. Senate blocks constitutional challenge to Trump impeachment trial

[webfact 81,921]

U.S. Senate blocks constitutional challenge to Trump impeachment trial

By David Morgan

 

U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) is trailed by reporters as he arrives to be sworn in for the impeachment trial of former president Donald Trump in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S. January 26, 2021. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate voted 55-45 on Tuesday to block a Republican effort to upend plans for former President Donald Trump's impeachment trial on a charge that he incited the deadly Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol.

 

In an early test of the Senate's impeachment drive, five Republicans joined Democrats to reject a motion by Republican Senator Rand Paul that would have required the chamber to vote on whether the trial violates the U.S. Constitution.

 

Paul and other Republicans contend that the proceedings are unconstitutional because Trump left office last Wednesday and the trial will be overseen by Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy instead of U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts.

 

"This proceeding, which would try a private citizen and not a president, vice president or civil officer, violates the Constitution," Paul told his fellow senators after they had been sworn in as jurors for the trial set to begin on Feb. 9.

 

Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer dismissed Paul's argument as "flat-out wrong" and "a constitutional get-out-of-jail-free card" for presidents guilty of misconduct.

 

Most of the Senate's 50 Republican lawmakers voted against a motion by Schumer to kill Paul's proposal.

 

Paul had predicted that support for his move would show the Senate incapable of convicting Trump, which would require 67 votes. But some Republicans described Tuesday's vote and the question of Trump's guilt as separate matters.

 

There is a debate among scholars over whether the Senate can hold a trial for Trump now that he has left office. Many experts have said "late impeachment" is constitutional, arguing that presidents who engage in misconduct late in their terms should not be immune from the very process set out in the Constitution for holding them accountable.

 

The Constitution makes clear that impeachment proceedings can result in disqualification from holding office in the future, so there is still an active issue for the Senate to resolve, those scholars have said.

 

'MATTER OF POLITICAL CONSEQUENCE'

Fellow Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski, who has been critical of Trump, rejected Paul's move.

 

"My review of it has led me to conclude that it is constitutional, in recognizing that impeachment is not solely about removing a president, it is also a matter of political consequence," Murkowski told reporters on Tuesday.

 

Murkowski joined fellow Republican Senators Mitt Romney, Susan Collins, Ben Sasse and Patrick Toomey in opposing Paul.

 

Trump is the only president to have been impeached by the House of Representatives twice and the first to face a trial after leaving power, with the possibility of being disqualified from future public office if convicted by two-thirds of the Senate.

 

The House approved a single article of impeachment - the equivalent of an indictment in a criminal trial - on Jan. 13, accusing him of inciting an insurrection with an incendiary speech to supporters before they stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6. A police officer and four others died in the melee.

 

At least 17 Republicans would need to join all 50 Democrats in the evenly divided Senate for Trump to be convicted, a two-thirds threshold that appears unlikely to be reached. Trump remains a powerful force among Republicans and his supporters have vowed to mount election challenges to lawmakers in the party who support conviction.

 

Some Republicans have criticized Trump's false claims of voting fraud and his failed efforts to overturn President Joe Biden's Nov. 3 election victory. But no Senate Republicans have said definitively that they plan to vote to convict him.

 

Although the Constitution calls on the chief justice to preside over presidential impeachment trials, a senator presides when the impeached is not the current president, a Senate source said. First elected to the chamber in 1974, Leahy, 80, is the most senior Democrat in the chamber and holds the title of Senate president pro tempore.

 

The nine House Democrats who will serve as prosecutors set the trial in motion on Monday by delivering the article of impeachment to the Senate.

 

(Reporting by David Morgan; Additional reporting by Jan Wolfe in Boston; Editing by Scott Malone, Alistair Bell and Peter Cooney)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2021-01-27

 

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[onebir 1,057]

20 minutes ago, webfact said:

Paul and other Republicans contend that the proceedings are unconstitutional because Trump left office last Wednesday and the trial will be overseen by Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy instead of U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts.

 

"This proceeding, which would try a private citizen and not a president, vice president or civil officer, violates the Constitution," Paul told his fellow senators after they had been sworn in as jurors for the trial set to begin on Feb. 9.

Can't believe they honestly thought they had a chance with this 'argument': if impeachment's only supposed to be applied to an incumbent, why was disbarment from public office for life made one of the penalties?

[Lacessit 23,332]

Five Republicans that are not jellyfish in the face of Trump's bullying. Doesn't say much for the future of the GOP.

[sirineou 17,899]

Rand Paul is a Looney tunes Republican  who is so far right , one more step and he might fall of the edge of the flat earth. 

[RichardColeman 27,877]

50 minutes ago, webfact said:

with the possibility of being disqualified from future public office if convicted by two-thirds of the Senate.

Waste of time , effort and money if they cannot get 2/3rds - and it looks like they wont.

[Tug 22,302]

2 minutes ago, RichardColeman said:

Waste of time , effort and money if they cannot get 2/3rds - and it looks like they wont.

Oh no you are mistaken imo it will get every one of those spineless cowards on record not condemning an attempted coup and all of trumps false election lies full exposure for what they are

[onebir 1,057]

15 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

Five Republicans that are not jellyfish in the face of Trump's bullying. Doesn't say much for the future of the GOP.

If another 12 or so got together and agreed to convict (if that's the right word) they'd get Trump disbarred from office and have have nothing to fear from him.

 

Maybe they're scared of the 'Trump constituency', rather than Trump himself?

 

 

[sirineou 17,899]

they should just let trump divide and destroy the know Nothings, formerly known as the republican party. 

Edited January 26 by sirineou

[SunnyinBangrak 116]

1 hour ago, onebir said:

1 hour ago, Lacessit said:

 

If another 12 or so got together and agreed to convict (if that's the right word) they'd get Trump disbarred from office and have have nothing to fear from him.

 

Maybe they're scared of the 'Trump constituency', rather than Trump himself?

It is possible if trump is barred from ever holding office that don jr or one of his minions like mark dice could run with trumps backing. After martyring trump his popularity could increase even more. That might be even worse

[Jeffr2 9,870]

2 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

Waste of time , effort and money if they cannot get 2/3rds - and it looks like they wont.

Sadly.  I agree this is a tough impeachment.  But, Trump did incite the riot, did commit sedition with voter fraud, etc.   A message needs to be sent that this is not acceptable. 

 

A few members of congress need to pay the price also.  Luckily, some already are.

[simple1 20,099]

2 hours ago, Tug said:

Oh no you are mistaken imo it will get every one of those spineless cowards on record not condemning an attempted coup and all of trumps false election lies full exposure for what they are

 

Demonstrates how trump thoroughly corrupted the US political decision making processes with Repubs refusing to act according to their Oath of Office. Hopefully a number will lose their seats in mid term elections. 

Edited January 27 by simple1

[TKDfella 2,177]

2 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

Waste of time , effort and money if they cannot get 2/3rds - and it looks like they wont.

Yes, I read on MSN this morning the inference was that the 55-45 vote indicated that a ²/₃ majority for conviction was unlikely. Whether that inference is right we'll have to wait and see.

[J Town 10,513]

48 minutes ago, Jeffr2 said:

Sadly.  I agree this is a tough impeachment.  But, Trump did incite the riot, did commit sedition with voter fraud, etc.   A message needs to be sent that this is not acceptable. 

 

A few members of congress need to pay the price also.  Luckily, some already are.

I bet there are more than a few amongst the GOP who aren't sleeping well. 45 is the death knell of the Republican party. What I find amusing is they are stabbing themselves with the very tool they wrought.

[Sujo 18,227]

3 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

Waste of time , effort and money if they cannot get 2/3rds - and it looks like they wont.

Well we wont know until the vote. But what it does do is put the repubs on the spot to vote.

[Chomper Higgot 36,624]

3 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

Waste of time , effort and money if they cannot get 2/3rds - and it looks like they wont.

How so?

 

Prosecutors are moving to bring sedition charges against the rightwing terrorists Trump and a handful of Republicans incited to attack the Capitol in his attempted coup.

 

This isn’t going to get any better for the GOP.

 

The Senate Trial might not convict Trump, but it will record the support for Trump of every Republican Senator, who will then have to defend their position as the sedition trials progress.

 

Added to which, Trump’s threat to the GOP of starting a new political party.

 

Republican Senators have a growing number of reasons to convict Trump and ban him from public office for life.