Posted on 01/31/2020 4:38:23 PM PST by kevcol
A group of moderates, including Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine), Mitt Romney (R-Utah), Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), met with McConnell Friday afternoon to hash out strategy to end the trial.
In response to the concerns of moderates who want to follow the model of the 1999 Clinton impeachment trial, which set up 25 hours of closed-door deliberations, Senate GOP leaders floated the idea of having time for deliberations starting Monday. But under one proposal senators would have gotten 10 minutes each to speak on the articles of impeachment against Trump.
(Excerpt) Read more at thehill.com ...
You’re right. Theyre showing their true, ugly colors and good, decent and normal people dont like what theyre seeing.
[I have never been more ashamed of being an American in my life. This is such a freaking clown show. The world is watching how dysfunctional our lawmakers are.]
The fact that it’s all very civilized doesn’t mean that the players are supposed to sit around congratulating each other on their awesomeness. The differences have to be thrashed out, and that is what is happening here. And the net result will be decided, after all the wailing and gnashing of teeth, in November of this year. With luck, it will be followed, year after year, by similar decisions in any number of Novembers for centuries no fewer than what preceded this coming one.
Yes, The President has the option of sending a report vs. speech. Trump chooses to deliver it in Congress.
THE PRESIDENT can’t just show up in Congress and give his speech. It must be at the request of Congress.
https://www.voanews.com/usa/us-politics/does-us-president-have-give-state-union-speech-no
Anytime a president comes to speak, it must be at the request of Congress, said Donald Ritchie, the former historian of the Senate. “It’s a very inflexible arrangement,’’ he said.
A resolution agreed to by both chambers specifies a date and time for a joint session of the House and the Senate “for receiving such communication as the president of the United States shall be pleased to make to them.’’
None of this is in the Constitution. The President can announce tomorrow the state of the union address will be postponed until after the senate vote on impeachment and that would be THE END. There is NOTHING congress could do about it. If they tried to be nasty the President could say he will give an address from the oval office and the state of the union will be delivered in writing. Nancy Pelosi has ZERO control of the state of the union.
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