Republican leader of the Senate Mitch McConnell
Addison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellGaetz points to Cheney at a rally in his home state The Sad Sign of the Senate: Trump is one of the law books The Hill’s Morning Report – Dems question trial; January becomes the deadliest pandemic month MORE (Ky.) On January 13 he announced to his comrades that he was open to voting to condemn President Trump
Donald Trump “QAnon Shaman” is set to testify at the impeachment trial, the lawyer says Boebert clashes with the Parkland survivor on Twitter: “Rest on your keyboard, boy.” Night Defense: FEMA asks Pentagon to help with vaccines The US says the Taliban “have not fulfilled their commitments” Army investigating chaplain of Fort Hood MORE for inciting an insurrection, but has since taken steps behind the scenes to restrict the effort to democratize.
On Tuesday, 45 Republican senators voted in favor of a senator’s motion. Rand Paul
Randal (Rand) Howard Paul The Sad Sign of the Senate: Trump is one of the law books The Hill’s Morning Report – Dems question trial; January becomes the deadliest pandemic month. Trump’s censorship has difficulties in the Senate MORE (R-Ky.) Declaring Trump’s second impeachment trial unconstitutional considering Trump no longer president.
The vote made it clear that there will be no condemnation in Trump’s Senate, as it would take at least 17 Republican Party votes to get the 67 votes needed in a 50-50 Senate.
“Just do the math,” the senator said. Susan Collins
Susan Margaret Collins Kaine looks to next week to file censorship aimed at banning Trump’s future White House aides office from pushing back the idea of splitting the Byrd Rule relief package, politics threatening hourly minimum wage MONTH (Maine), one of five Republicans who opposed Paul’s motion, remarked to reporters after the vote.
McConnell was described by associates as “furious” at the Mafia’s attack on the Capitol, and has continued to say he will keep an open mind to legal arguments presented during the trial.
It seems clear that he is more than open to Trump’s passing party, particularly after the former president was largely guilty of the Republican Party losing two elections in Georgia that cost him a Senate majority.
At the same time, McConnell probably wanted to avoid an intense fight within the caucus for a Trump conviction. And he had seen the commotion in the house, where Rep. Liz Cheney
Elizabeth (Liz) Lynn CheneyGaetz points to Cheney at a rally in her home state GOP has a growing problem with Marjorie Taylor Greene Trump announces “cordial” meeting with McCarthy in Florida MORE (Wy.) And other Republicans who voted to accuse Trump have received furious criticism from Trump supporters.
Over the past few weeks, McConnell made a number of pre-vote moves on Paul’s motion that GOP senators said made it very likely that the motion would be successful.
And the effect of those moves and Paul’s motion was the annulment of the trial in the Senate before it began.
“I don’t know how the pieces fell together, but they fell together and Mitch is pretty cunning,” said a GOP senator who spoke to The Hill.
McConnell’s leadership team informed Senate Republicans at a Jan. 21 conference call that Chief Justice John Roberts would not preside over the trial.
Roberts presided over Trump’s first trial a year ago. His replacement is Sen. Patrick Leahy
Patrick Joseph LeahyLeahy was expected to preside over the dismissal after a health scare The Hill’s Morning Report: Biden seeks vaccine for all in summer; Trump censorship? Why the absence of John Roberts at trial in the Senate is no MORE surprise (D-Vt.), President of the Senate pro tempore and senior Democratic senator.
This revelation “crystallized” for Paul the idea of challenging the constitutionality of the whole process, since he would preside over a Democratic senator.
The timing of Paul’s vote was also curious.
The Senate voted on Paul’s motion immediately after Republican senators heard a presentation by George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley, a outspoken critic of a former president’s democratically ousted effort.
A second Republican senator who requested anonymity said the surprise vote was immediately after the noon presentation to many Republican senators.
“That was kind of a sandbag,” the legislator said.
His. Lisa Murkowski
Lisa Ann MurkowskiKaine looks next week to file censorship aimed at banning future office conservatives from Trump, we can’t go back to the “no” party under Biden Schumer warns Democrats could do it alone in coronavirus relief as early as next week (Alaska), one of five Republican senators who voted against Paul’s motion, said he thought it was unfortunate that the Senate was forced to vote immediately after Turley’s presentation and before they could hear different opinions. .
“For a significant institutional issue like this, having this about us caused everyone to be a little flat-footed,” he said.
“So we listened to one side,” he added. “I think almost everyone was surprised to be able to take only a public position today, but a vote on it.
McConnell also took steps to delay the opening of the trial.
The Democratic leader of the Senate declined Charles Schumer
Chuck SchumerPsaki expects DHS candidate Mayorkas to lead the task force to reunite separated families. Biden DHS Selects Advances in Senate, Eliminating Republican Obstacle Biden and Congress Can Change Child Poverty with a Pen(DN.Y.) demands to reconvene the Senate from the January recess in time to begin the impeachment trial while Trump was still in office.
At the time, it was unclear what would happen due to the delay, but it appears he let the rage over the Jan. 6 attack simmer in the caucus.
“This is McConnell’s game, he knows that the longer he waits for something, the more it fades,” a GOP aide to the Senate said. “McConnell knows that if something is expected, the squeal goes out.”
McConnell gained more time for his colleagues by pushing for House prosecutors to wait until Jan. 28 to file his indictment in the Senate, which would have given Trump’s defense team until on Feb. 11 to file a pre-trial brief.
He insisted that the president, as unpopular as he was immediately after the Capitol attack, would get the right process and a fair trial, even if he lengthened the process more than Democrats and even many Republicans wanted.
McConnell and Schumer finally agreed that the House’s dismissal managers would exhibit the dismissal articles on Jan. 25 and that the pre-trial record of the president should not be delivered until Feb. 8, establishing on Jan. 9. February as the start date of the trial.
There were reasons for Schumer to accept a delay.
He had to balance the concerns of Democrats like Sens. Chris Murphy
Christopher (Chris) Scott MurphySchumer vows to go ahead with Trump trial despite setback The Hill’s Morning Report – Biden: focus on vaccine, virus and travel Tensions rise after gun incident near floor of the house MORE (D-Conn.) I Tim Kaine
Timothy (Tim) Michael Kaine Kaine looks to next week to file censorship with the goal of banning Trump from the future office The Hill’s Morning Report – Dems trial trial; January becomes the deadliest pandemic month. The bipartisan group discussing Senate rules changes MORE (D-Va.), Who did not want the indictment trial to begin immediately to prevent the selection of President Biden’s cabinet and work on a COVID-19 relief bill.
McConnell did not urge his colleagues to vote in one way or another on Paul’s motion, and he has neither defended for nor against a conviction.
But a third Republican senator, who sought anonymity to debate backstage maneuvers, said the way the debate unfolded at the Republican Party conference was the result of McConnell’s work.
The senator said he saw McConnell’s Jan. 13 statement that he had not decided how he would vote for a dismissal article, rather than a warning to Trump not to do anything dumb, such as pardoning riot police who stormed the Capitol.
“Even going back to the beginning when McConnell was sending the message that he was open to voting to condemn, I think maybe it’s designed to help save the country and prevent Trump from doing things that are even more harmful,” the senator said. . .
Other Republican senators said they thought McConnell “kept the door open” to vote for a conviction if additional “condemnatory” information emerged about Trump’s role in provoking the crowd that stormed the Capitol on Dec. 6. gener.
It is unclear to what extent McConnell was only responding to changes in political winds.
But GOP senators say it’s weird that the senator’s hand hasn’t been playing for a long time when it comes to directing the GOP caucus.
“It doesn’t take long for Mitch to be surprised,” said the second Republican Party senator requesting anonymity.