Republican Sen. Richard Shelby and Tommy Tuberville of Alabama voted to acquit former President Donald Trump of charges in which he claimed to have incited the January 6 uprising at the U.S. capital.
In statements after the vote, no Alabama senator spoke on the question of President Trump’s guilt for inciting the violent takeover of the American Capitol. They focused on the constitutionality of the indictment of a president after his tenure.
‘The Constitution speaks of the removal of a sitting president, not a private citizen. “Last week I voted to dismiss this case on the grounds of its dubious constitutionality,” Senator Richard Shelby said in a statement on Saturday.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville reflected a similar reason, but said he had an open mind during the indictment process.
“I voted for a number of reasons not to plead guilty, including the fact that I do not think the Senate has the power to try a private citizen,” Sen. Tuberville said in a statement Saturday.
Trump was acquitted Saturday by a vote of 57 guilty to 43 not guilty. A total of 67 votes would have been needed to convict him on the charges filed by the House. Only seven Senate Republicans voted to convict the former president.
The Republicans who voted to condemn Trump were Sens. Richard Burr of North Carolina, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah, Ben Sasse of Nebraska and Patrick Toomey of Pennsylvania.
‘The Framers have been accused of accusing the president, vice president and civil servants of the United States. That is why I voted today to acquit, ”said Sen Shelby.
Sen. Tuberville said it was time for the country to move on, adding that both sides of the political path should remember that they are finally in the same team.
“There are no winners today. The American people lost. Our country is hurting due to a global pandemic, and rather than meet the serious needs of our constituents, we have wasted an entire week on an unconstitutional trial. ‘