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Seven Republicans joined the Democrats in voting to convictDonald Trumpat his impeachment trial, but the final vote of 57-43 fell short andthe former president was acquittedfor the second time.
Trump was charged with inciting an insurrection in January after a mob of his supportersstormed the U.S. Capitolduring a joint session of Congress and five people died. The charges made him the only U.S. president to have beenimpeached twice.
Along with all 50 Senate Democrats, Republican Sens. Richard Burr of North Carolina, Susan Collins of Maine, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska,Mitt Romneyof Utah, Ben Sasse of Nebraska and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania voted guilty on Saturday.
Conviction against Trump required 67 votes, a two-thirds majority of the Senate.
Top Row, Left to Right: Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg via Getty Images; Toni L. Sandys-Pool/Getty Images; Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images; Bottom Row Left to Right: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images; Patrick Semansky-Pool/Getty Images; Zach Gibson/Getty Images
In his ownstatement, Sasse said Congress would show itself to be “weak and timid” if Trump was not convicted. “This institution needs to respect itself enough to tell the executive that some lines cannot be crossed,” he said.
“On election night 2014, I promised Nebraskans I’d always vote my conscience even if it was against the partisan stream,” Sasse continued. “In my first speech here in the Senate in November 2015, I promised to speak out when a president – even of my own party – exceeds his or her powers. I cannot go back on my word, and Congress cannot lower our standards on such a grave matter, simply because it is politically convenient. I must vote to convict.”
In a separate statement, Burr called the Jan. 6 riots a “grim day in our nation’s history and said Trump “bears responsibility” for the day’s events.
In avideo statement, Cassidy said, “Our constitution and our country is more important than any one person,” adding, “I voted to convict President Trump because he is guilty.”
After Trump’s acquittal, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the a verdict of guilty “was only one correct verdict.”
“This trial was about the final acts of a president who represents the very antithesis of our first president and sought to place one man before the entire country, himself,” he said. Let the record show, let the record show before God, history and the solemn oath we swear to the Constitution that there was only one correct verdict in this trial: guilty.”
Minority Leader Mitch McConnellvoted to acquitTrump but still said there is “no question” that Trump is “practically and morally responsible for provoking” the attack on the U.S. Capitol.
“The people who stormed this building believed they were acting on the wishes and instructions of their president,” McConnell said after the vote.
source: people.com
