The House voted last night to demand that Vice President Mike Pence use the Constitution’s 25th Amendment to remove President Donald J. Trump from office, a largely symbolic act leading up to a vote today to impeach the president for a second time. The House went ahead with the non-binding resolution, which passed 223-205, even though hours earlier Pence told House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that he wouldn’t comply because he didn’t believe “that such a course of action is in the best interests of our Nation or consistent with our Constitution.” Only one Republican, Representative Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, voted with all 222 Democrats for the resolution.
The House is currently debating H.Res. 41 – A Rule Providing for Consideration of H.Res. 24 – Impeaching Donald John Trump, President of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors which will be followed by the impeachment vote, which the House is expected to start voting on by groups at 2:30 pm. Up to 20 Republicans have said they will join Democrats to impeach Mr. Trump for the second time, making him the first president to be impeached twice. The vote is on a single article of impeachment charging Trump with incitement of insurrection, traced to his repeated lies about the election being stolen from him that led his supporters to raid the Capitol last week. The measure would bar Trump from ever holding public office again if he is convicted.
After the House impeaches Trump it is expected to adjourn until next week.
Democrats are debating how quickly the Senate can and should hold a trial. Some Democrats hope to slow the process in the Senate, arguing that the chamber needs time to confirm President-elect Joe Biden’s national security nominees and to consider additional coronavirus relief legislation. The Senate is out of session until January 19th and returning before then would take bipartisan cooperation. Absent bipartisan agreement, a Senate trial would not be held until sometime after Trump’s term ends. Democrats are weighing procedural options, including holding the article of impeachment in the House until the Senate is ready to act. Biden told reporters Monday that he reached out to the Senate parliamentarian to determine if there could be a “bifurcated” schedule in which the Senate splits its time between the impeachment trial and other business but he hadn’t yet received an answer.
Senate Minority Leader Schumer, meanwhile, is eying a long-shot maneuver to bring the chamber back into session early that does not require unanimous consent from all 100 senators. The New York Democrat is citing emergency powers that the Senate approved in 2004 authorizing the majority and minority leaders, “acting jointly,” when the Senate is out of session to modify the order dictating its next convening time “when, in their opinion, such action is warranted by intervening circumstances.”
In a “Dear Colleague” Tuesday Schumer said if Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell would agree, they could use the emergency reconvening power to call the Senate back into session before January 19th to conduct the impeachment trial. Schumer is calling on the Senate to return immediately after the House sends over the article of impeachment, citing the use of the emergency authorities granted to Senate leaders in 2004. Leader Schumer also told the caucus that the first legislative priority will be crafting another coronavirus relief package that will include $2,000 checks and more resources for vaccine distribution. In addition, Schumer said that Democrats will consider legislation related to climate change, health care, criminal justice reform, immigration and the tax code. He added that Democrats will move forward, even if they don’t receive support from Republicans.
