NOTE TO MITCH: The Constitution Doesn’t Force You To Entertain Democrat Witch Hunts
Shane Trejo
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Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) vowed earlier today that he would go along with the Democratic Party’s witch hunt if the House formally impeaches President Donald Trump over his correspondence with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
“Well, under the Senate rules, we’re required to take it up if the House does go down that path, and we’ll follow the Senate rules … It’s a Senate rule related to impeachment that would take 67 votes to change, so I would have no choice but to take it up. How long you’re on it is a whole different matter, but I would have no choice but to take it up, based on a Senate rule on impeachment,” McConnell said today during an appearance on CNBC.
However, McConnell is misrepresenting the powers granted to the Senate under Article I, Section 3, Clause 6 of the Constitution, which states as follows:
The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments. When sitting for that Purpose, they shall be on Oath or Affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside: And no Person shall be convicted without the Concurrence of two thirds of the Members present.
While the Constitution makes it clear that the Senate has “the sole power to try all Impeachments,” it does not state that the Senate must try any impeachment proceeding that is approved by the House. If McConnell and Senate Republicans had the will, they could simply ignore the House’s impeachment vote.
It appears that McConnell is intent upon going through with the Democrats’ charade, as he has remained consistent on his position for months.
“If it [impeachment] were to happen, the Senate has no choice. If the House were to act, the Senate immediately goes into a trial,” McConnell said to NPR in March.
McConnell continues to play both sides of the fence, making light of the Democratic Party’s witch hunt while simultaneously being willing to entertain their impeachment endeavor if they are willing to take it far enough.
“If this all sounds familiar,” McConnell said last week referring to the impeachment drive from the Democrats, “that’s because at this time literally one week ago, the same Democrats were shouting about impeaching [Supreme Court] Justice Brett Kavanaugh.”
“That rush to judgment was on the basis of a sketchy story in a major newspaper that promptly had to publish an enormous correction,” he added, in a reference to the New York Times being caught circulating misleading news. “But one week later, here they go again: Threatening impeachment without the facts in hand.”
“While our friends across the Capitol rush to judgment and dive deeper into their nearly three-year-old impeachment addiction, we’ll stay focused on the American people’s business,” McConnell said to finish his thought.
President Trump is apparently realizing that his own party’s leaders may not have his back, and has escalated his Twitter assault against the over-reaching Democrats in recent days:
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1178477536818413571
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1178477539653771264
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1178643854737772545
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1178650939374424067
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1178651638313226240
With McConnell seemingly unwilling to use his power to protect President Trump from this witch hunt, Trump will likely be without many allies inside the beltway as he fights on behalf of the American people against this unprecedented assault on democracy.
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