Posted on 01/13/2021 1:45:28 PM PST by The Pack Knight
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has rejected a plan to reconvene the Senate in an emergency session to hold trial over an impeachment article against President Trump in the House.
McConnell press secretary Doug Andres confirmed a report that the Kentucky Republican would not sanction such a move on Wednesday.
Without the emergency session, the Senate is due back in session on Jan. 19., so McConnell’s decision all but kills a Democrat-led effort to oust Trump from office before his term is up and President-elect Joe Biden is sworn in on Jan. 20. A trial over the impeachment article is unlikely to conclude within such a short time.
Democrats have proposed holding the trial over Trump’s impeachment well-into Biden’s presidency. Michael Luttig, a former judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, slammed the idea on Tuesday, asserting that impeaching and removing a president after he left office is “unconstitutional.”
“It appears that even if the House of Representatives impeaches President Trump this week, the Senate trial on that impeachment will not begin until after Trump has left office and President-Elect Biden has become president on Jan. 20,” Luttig wrote in The Washington Post. “That Senate trial would be unconstitutional.”
Luttig continued:
Once Trump’s term ends on Jan. 20, Congress loses its constitutional authority to continue impeachment proceedings against him — even if the House has already approved articles of impeachment.Therefore, if the House of Representatives were to impeach the president before he leaves office, the Senate could not thereafter convict the former president and disqualify him under the Constitution from future public office.
The reason for this is found in the Constitution itself. Trump would no longer be incumbent in the Office of the President at the time of the delayed Senate proceeding and would no longer be subject to “impeachment conviction” by the Senate, under the Constitution’s Impeachment Clauses. Which is to say that the Senate’s only power under the Constitution is to convict — or not — an incumbent president.
On Monday, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV), a moderate, criticized the ongoing impeachment push and noted that any impeachment article passed in the House will likely not have enough support in the Senate.
“I think, my arithmetic, that means we have 19 Republicans. I don’t see that. And I think the House should know that also. We have been trying to send that message over. They know the votes aren’t there. You would think that they would do that,” Manchin said on Monday.
“I think this is so ill-advised for Joe Biden to be coming in, trying to heal the country, trying to be the president of all the people, when we’re going to be so divided and fighting again. Let the judicial system do its job,” he added. “And then, we’re a country of the rule of law. That’s the bedrock of who we are. Let that take its place. Let the investigations go on. Let the evidence come forth, and then we will go forward from there. There’s no rush to do this impeachment now. We can do it later if they think it’s necessary.”
Then we may as well just buy a rope and hang ourselves, eh? Fight or die. This is not the time for self defeatist rhetoric.
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No, I was replying to HER, you misinterpreted me. I have not given up and indeed see the plan...it is happening and PDJT will be there again, I just don’t know who will be VP...Pompeo or Jr or Flynn...one of these three. I am not, however, believing JFK, Jr is alive...that is a bridge too far.
I am very tired or lazy mental midgets who think there WOULD be primaries.
Mitchie probably would, but it would mean that he might have to do some work. Besides it would drag him away from his bottle and he'd have to sober up a day early.
We don’t like him, but Cocaine Mitch is extremely smart.
He gave us the judges, tax cuts & more.
More? Like what? And what did those judges get us? Nothing. Corporate tax cuts? That was a gift to the GOP donor class. Certainly nothing to do with us.
China Mitch is a wholly owned subsidiary of the CCP. Don’t be a dupe.
Go to the hardware store and buy a rope or a gun then.
Half the impeachments in this nation’s history took place
on Nancy Pelosi’s watch.
What a vindictive small minded little twit.
I agree. He will be busy. His business will be in shambles. So unfair. The wall. Look at the stock market, jobs, criminal justice reform. Covid vaccine. His protection of the unborn.
It’s still McConnell’s next term until Newsome sends a replacement for Harris...but Harris hasn’t resigned yet. Who doe Newsome have on deck? Other wise it’s 50-49 and Harris can’t play tie breaker until someone replaces her.
I don’t expect him or anyone else to reverse 30 years of progressive advancement. It’s just not going to happen. Nancy Pelosi is a threat to us though. She is a William Tecumseh Sherman level threat and my energy would be better served opposing her than Mitch McConnell I think. He has done nothing to convince me otherwise.
Pelosi is only a threat because we do not have an opposition party opposing her. We’ve had 4 years of bipartisan coup capped by an election stolen in a bipartisan manner and now today a bipartisan impeachment.
Timeline of Capitol Events. Riot was going full on while Trump was speaking.
This was a lynching, a conviction and sentencing without a due-process trial with evidence and witnesses. No one went on record. It was “trial” by a sneering, biased, hostile media culture.
McConnell is clearly going to hold the impeachment in reserve. If Trump does something McConnell doesn’t like (pardon, declass)... don’t doubt the trial will be immediate and the vote quick, and the verdict already decided.
2018: Katko 52.6% 136,920 Balter 47.4% 123,226
I estimate that small government conservatives are 25% of the consistent voting public [19% voted Perot in 1992, DESPITE all the Media-Uniparty-Deep State dirty tricks, which President Trump has shown us to be real things].
That's anywhere from 70,000 to 85,000 of the 2020 vote in NY 24th.
Ratko is so screwed.
Wait'll these Repukes get a load of the Woke Twenty Five Percent...
Had he done this, there would have been a price to pay. In two weeks no one is going to even think about this and Trump will be on a screen somewhere hurling flaming bowling balls at Joe Biden.
Mitch knows the Dems aren’t going to help him and Trump is already out of the picture. No use in upsetting 80 million potential friends over Nancy Pelosi’s dementia.
I don't believe anything coming from the media anymore. If they tell me it's raining, I'll go outside and verify before believing them.
McConnell is clearly going to hold the impeachment in reserve. If Trump does something McConnell doesn’t like (pardon, declass)... don’t doubt the trial will be immediate and the vote quick, and the verdict already decided.
Bingo. Recall Haspel’s public meeting with McConnell right after the election. They are both from Kentucky. China Mitch obviously sees himself as her patron and wants to protect her.
I don’t sell out people whose vision is as clear as Trump’s.
I think Mitch is too affected by expediency.
He did a complete 180°. China must have finally met his price.
My take is, that if Trump is impeached, it’s going to be used
to screw with him for the rest of his life.
I won’t buy into justifying that.
Gonzalez (OH) - 2 term congressman better known for his playing in the NFL. Trump won his district by 16% in 2016 and 15% in 2020. He’s gone in a primary in 2 years.
Rice (SC) - has held office since winning 2012 election. Trump won his district by 18.9% in 2016 and 18.5% in 2020. He’s gone in a primary in 2 years.
Newhouse (WA)- Been in office since 2015 election. Trump won his district by 22% in 2016 and 19% in 2020. He’s gone in a primary in 2 years.
Meijer (MI)- Literally just got elected this past November. Trump won his district by 10% in 2016 and 16% in 2020. He’s gone in a primary in 2 years. Enjoy your one and only term in office before the voters kick you out.
Kinzinger (IL) - Been in office since winning in 2010. Trump won his district by 18% in 2016. Oddly can’t find 2020 results for Trump there but it’s gone reliably Republican for president every year since 2000 except 2008. But 2008 should be seen as an outlier since Obama was the Senator from IL. He will likely have a strong primary challenge.
Katko (NY) - Been in office since winning 2014 election. Relatively blue district (4-6% advantage to Dems). He’ll lose in general election in 2 years.
Cheney (WY) - Worst of the worst here. In office sicne winning 2016 election. Represents entire state of Wyoming. Trump won the state by 46.3% in 2016 and 33.7% in 2020. I expect multiple primary challenges.
Herrera Beutler (WA) - In office since winning 2010 election. Trump wont he district by 7% in 2016 and 4% in 2020. Will likely not have a serious primary challenge but will lose the general in 2 years.
Upton (MI) - In office winning election in 1986. Wow. Trump won district by 8% in 2016 and by 4% in 2020. Expect not much of a strong primary challenge but will lose in the general. Or, more likely, retire as he sees his number plummeting heavily.
Valadao (CA)- Literally just won the seat this past November. Hillary won his district by 15.5% in 2016 and Biden by 10.9% in 2020. Will likely face no political repercussions.
What is the point of all of this? Only Valado, Beutler, Katko are representing “blue” or “purple” districts. The others are deep red and politicians who expect no downside to their actions. They don’t represent the people at all. It’s time to start planning to primary every single one of those who are “deep red.”
Mitch McConnell has decided to wait and turn this over to Schumer if you don’t think Schumer will go forward you are CRAZY!! They are out to DESTROY THIS MAN!!
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