The Senate's sad signal -- Trump is one for the law books
Impeachment is a political process, and the second impeachment of Donald Trump is no exception. This week's vote on Sen. Rand Paul's (R-Ky.) resolution to dismiss the impeachment as unconstitutional failed to muster more than five Republican nays. The resolution failed, but the outcome of the trial would appear to be an inevitable acquittal since at least 17 Republicans would need to join with the 50 Democrats to achieve conviction.
The signal is unmistakable.
The argument for dismissal is that Trump is now a private citizen so there is no jurisdiction to remove someone who has already left office. So, let's ignore the Jan. 6 insurrection, which Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Trump had provoked. Of course, if there is a jurisdictional problem, McConnell created it. While he was still majority leader, he could have ordered a trial to take place before Jan. 20 with Trump still in office. But he refused to call back the Senate. And yesterday, he voted with the majority of his Republican colleagues to dismiss the impeachment because the trial would occur after Jan. 20.
As a political matter, many Republicans would like to oust Trump from their party. A conviction might disqualify him from holding any office. But clearly their calculus is that their party is better off without impeachment than with. They need Trump's charisma, his appeal to a far-right base.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/the-senates-sad-signal-%e2%80%94-trump-is-one-for-the-law-books/ar-BB1dbfkV?li=BBnb7Kz
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