A handful of GOP senators crossed party lines on Tuesday by voting to confirm the constitutionality of former President Donald Trump’s indictment.
The Senate agreed to discuss the case against Trump 56-44, after hours of arguments by the former president’s legal team and managers of the House of Representatives. Altogether six Republicans – Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah, Ben Sasse of Nebraska and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania – they sided with the Democrats to continue the trial.
Cassidy voted to proceed with the trial just two weeks after joining other Republicans to dismiss the charge on the grounds that proceedings against a former president would be unconstitutional. The Louisiana senator explained his reversal shortly after the first day of arguments.
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“We have heard arguments from both sides about the constitutionality of having a Senate hearing against a president who has since resigned,” Cassidy said. “There is sufficient evidence of constitutionality for the Senate to proceed with the trial. This vote is not a prejudice about the final vote to convict.
“If anyone disagrees with my vote and wants an explanation, I ask them to listen to the arguments put forward by the House of Representatives and former President Trump’s lawyers,” Cassidy added. “The House leaders had much stronger constitutional arguments. The president’s team did not.”
Trump will face several charges of inciting insurgency following the January 6 riots at the Capitol. If convicted on the charge, Trump could be barred from appearing again in the future.
Trump’s legal team has argued that a criminal trial will be difficult because he is no longer president and cannot be removed from office. Attorney David Schoen accuses the Democrats of trying to deny voters who supported Trump in the 2020 election and of trying to silence a political candidate with whom they disagree.
The House Accusation Team, led by Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin, cited the corruption case against William Belknap, war secretary of President Ulysses Grant, in 1876 as a precedent for the execution of a former federal official.
In an emotional speech on the floor, Raskin called on the Senate not to create a “January exception” that would excuse the actions of crippled presidents just because they were leaving office.
In January, Cassidy was one of 45 Republicans who voted to support a motion by Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky to declare the indictment unconstitutional. Earlier this week, the Louisiana senator took note of the circumstances that preceded the initial vote.
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“I think it’s important to understand the nature of the vote. It was mentioned two hours before. There was no debate and no statement from either side,” Cassidy said during an appearance on NBC News. Meet the press. “It was a mood in an instant. And based on what senators knew and felt at that point, they then voted. But we will now hopefully have presentations from both sides, and we will have the evidence as impartial judges. ‘
While the Senate has cast enough votes to proceed with a trial, the Democrats’ path to conviction is uncertain. At least 17 Republicans will have to vote to condemn Trump in order to reach the 67-vote threshold, assuming all Democrats hold the party line.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has earlier indicated that Democrats will be able to reprimand Trump if the conviction is not delivered at trial.