“No – not at all”, the Republican no. 2 said when asked if he could defend what Trump did. “The way he handled the national election, both in terms of his public statements and things he tried to do to change the outcome, no.”
“Well, that’s a good question,” said Thune, who will be re-elected to South Dakota next year. “One way, of course, would be in a court of law.”
Asked about Trump’s actions in connection with the January 6 riot on Capitol Hill, Sen. John Cornyn, a member of the GOP leadership, said, “I’m not going to defend them.
“I think he has already been held accountable in court for public opinion,” Cornyn said when asked if the Senate should take any action, arguing that it would be a ‘dangerous precedent’ to convict a former president to be found.
The rhetoric shows the rift between Republicans of the House and the Senate, while the party struggles to find its voice after the turbulent Trump era. Many Republicans of the House remain strong Trump defenders, saying he did nothing wrong and that he should not be blamed for the violence that took place at the Capitol.
A majority of Republicans in the House supported efforts to oust President Joe Biden’s election victories in two key states, while only a handful did so in the Senate. After House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy of California repulsed his criticism of Trump and made a trip to South Florida on Thursday to meet with the former president, he went out of his way to announce that they were united was in their struggle to take back the House next year. Back in Washington, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican from the Senate, made it clear that he has not spoken to Trump since Dec. 15, and it is unclear if he will ever do so again.
Only five Republicans voted to kill Paul’s procedural motion. Paul told CNN that he had briefed the Republican locker room the night before the vote on his plans, a move that has allowed most Republicans to quickly align themselves with their message that the Senate has no role to play. to hold trial as soon as a president has left office.
The five who voted against Paul’s attempt include one who is retiring (Sen. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania), three who have not yet said whether they voted for Trump in November or voted for someone else (Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Ben Sasse of Nebraska) and another who voted to convict Trump in his first indictment (Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah). Several of them have argued that there is a precedent set by the Senate to prosecute former federal office bearers, an important point the Democratic indictment managers plan to pursue during the trial.
But with the vote earlier this week, both parties agree that there is virtually no way to the 67 votes needed to condemn Trump, and also remove him from office, as Democrats occupy only 50 seats in the chamber.
“I have already condemned them,” Louisiana GOP Senator Bill Cassidy said when asked if he could defend Trump’s actions.
Asked what Republicans should do about it, Cassidy said: ‘There is something in our country called the judiciary and there are things called kangaroo courts. We do not need a kangaroo court. ‘
Senator Mike Braun initially signed to object to the results of the Arizona Electoral College, but abandoned the attempt after rioters broke into the Capitol. Yet he also does the GOP dance of the Senate: he criticizes Trump while indicating that he is not guilty.
“I think most will have a lot of trouble saying there is no connection” between Trump’s actions and the deadly violence, “Braun said. But the Republican from Indiana claims he was worried about the conviction of someone who is no longer in office. “For me, it’s a terrible precedent to set. He’s not here, he’s a private citizen. ‘
Asked how they should hold Trump accountable now, Braun said: “I think he’s going to be held accountable for the way people sort him out with everything he wants to do in the future.”
CNN’s Aaron Pellish contributed to this report.