Some Republicans Say There Is ‘Zero Chance’ Trump Is Convicted in Impeachment Trial
Some lawmakers say an impeachment trial for former President Donald Trump is unconstitutional and a conviction is “very unlikely.”
“It’s a partisan farce,” Republican Sen. Rand Paul said of the trial, according to Fox News. “Zero chance of conviction.”
Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy said in an interview Sunday that although he is in favor of convicting Trump, he understands Paul’s argument.
“I admit this is of course a matter of first impression and so I don’t think the case that Senator Paul is making is a ridiculous one,” Murphy said.
The Senate would need 67 votes to convict Trump. There are 50 Democrats in the Senate and 50 Republicans.
In a vote in the Senate in January on whether an impeachment trial is constitutional, five Republicans and all 50 Democrats voted that a trial is allowed by law. Forty-five Republicans voted to say a trial would be unconstitutional.
“They know that this has no chance of winning. There’s no chance of the president actually being convicted here,” Trump’s 2020 senior adviser Jason Miller said on Fox News Sunday.
“This is designed to try to implement political pain, so to speak, over the course of a week, maybe a week and a half, and then they’re going to move on. They’re not even taking this seriously.”
The impeachment trial comes after supporters of Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Many believe Trump “incited” the crowds by claiming that there was election fraud in the presidential election. He encouraged supporters to march “peacefully and patriotically,” but also to “fight like hell” against the certification of election results.
“It’s not a crime,” Sen. Lindsey Graham said. “The House is impeaching him under the grounds that his speech created a riot. If you believe he committed a crime, he can be prosecuted like any other citizen.
Impeachment is a political process. We’ve never impeached a president once they’re out of office.”
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Chip Somodevilla/Staff
Amanda Casanova is a writer living in Dallas, Texas. She has covered news for ChristianHeadlines.com since 2014. She has also contributed to The Houston Chronicle, U.S. News and World Report and IBelieve.com. She blogs at The Migraine Runner.
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