by Rvaughn » Thu Dec 19, 2019 2:31 pm
...that is the question.
The House has voted to impeach President Trump. It now goes to the Senate. When trying an impeachment, the Senate in effect becomes the jury and the supreme court.
However, there is now talk of the House withholding the articles of impeachment from the Senate, apparently to try to force the Senate to agree to their parameters for the trial. (I am not sure I understand this, exactly — I have not heard or read much yet, but this is how what I heard sounds.) Is this just more political circus? It is not like they have a different Senate from the one the House knew they would have to send the results to when they started impeachment proceedings.
I wonder if this actually has more to do with another part of the process. It is my understanding that under the Senates rules, Senators must be present for the trial every day (except Sunday, I think) until a final judgment is rendered. For however long the trial lasts, it would hog-tie the five Democratic senators who are currently running for president — Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Amy Klobuchar, Cory Booker and Michael Bennet. They will be stuck serving as jurors in the trial of the incumbent of the president they are running to replace. This would seriously impede their ability both to campaign and raise funds, and surely give a leg up to their Democratic opponents (and I guess to Trump himself, as far as campaigning and fundraising).
It will be interesting to see how this plays out.