Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) will move to acquit President Trump if the House of Representatives impeaches him, not just dismiss the charges with a motion.
According to two Republican Senators who spoke to CNN, the GOP want to have a vote on acquittal to clear President Trump of charges brought against him by the House Dems — not just a motion to dismiss the case.
Republicans want to have a vote on acquittal — to clear the President of the charges against him — not simply rely on a 51-vote threshold procedural motion to dismiss the hotly disputed case.
The Constitution mandates 67 votes are required to convict the President and remove him from office, a barrier widely considered too high to be reached in this case.
One vote McConnell can’t rely on is that of Vice President Mike Pence, who has “no role in impeachment,” according to a GOP leadership aide, despite being president of the Senate with the mandate to break ties.
One of the senators, speaking anonymously, said McConnell would not call a vote on a motion to proceed to the impeachment articles unless he knew he had the 51 votes needed to end the trial, which would then set up a final vote on the articles themselves. On that final vote, 67 votes would be needed to convict Trump and remove him from office.
House Democrats announced Tuesday they will bring two articles of impeachment against President Trump: abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.
The House Judiciary Committee began to markup articles of impeachment Wednesday evening.
A copy of the Articles of Impeachment was released to the public and is 9 pages long.
** You can read the articles, as released by Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y. here.
The Democrats launched impeachment against Trump after a Brennan CIA plant-turned-whistleblower filed a complaint based on third-hand knowledge alleging Trump threatened to withhold military aid from Ukraine unless they investigated the Biden crime family.
The entire hoax unraveled and Speaker Pelosi walked her caucus off the cliff only to watch as the Senate acquits Trump and clears him of all charges.
