#Motion to dismiss impeachment trial

Did you think the Senate would stand up for the rule of law? That it would exercise Congress’s institutional role in checking executive branch wrongdoing? That it would work hard to ensure the next election is fair? What are you, a sucker? It’s widely taken for granted that matters of principle aren’t weighing on him here. The tricky balance McConnell is trying to strikeĮven as far as hardened political operators go, McConnell stands out for his cynicism and calculation. So he’s still trying to figure out the best plan to get to that predetermined outcome - one that enough of the more independent-minded senators in his conference can stomach, that would shield his vulnerable members from too many ugly choices, and that would avoid infuriating the president. But all of the votes until that final verdict need a majority to pass, so McConnell can’t afford to lose more than three of his Republican senators. “There’s no chance the president will be removed from office,” he said on Fox News last month. McConnell is confident this will end in a not guilty verdict. Since there are only 47 Democrats, that would entail at least 20 Republican senators voting to remove a Republican president from office. Sixty-seven senators must vote to convict Trump to remove him from office. To be clear: The trial’s overall outcome does not appear to be in question.

#Motion to dismiss impeachment trial

Though he’s privately made clear he wants a short trial with no witnesses, his initial trial plan didn’t resolve the issue one way or the other, instead saving it for later, after opening arguments and questioning from senators has wrapped up. So far, on this topic, McConnell has punted. But he ended up having to make handwritten changes to that plan the day after he released it (spreading opening arguments over more days with fewer hours each day, and letting the House’s evidence be admitted by default unless there are objections).Īnd all this has been a prelude to the biggest showdown: the Senate’s decision on whether to subpoena new witnesses or documents for testimony. McConnell had claimed for a week that he had the votes necessary to pass his plan for how the first phase of the trial would proceed. On Tuesday, there was another minor hiccup. But Senate Republicans let it be known that they didn’t have the votes for a motion to dismiss - so the idea was dropped, guaranteeing the trial will last at least a week. That could have cut off the trial immediately and showcased rock-solid Republican support for Trump. The Senate did not, in fact, hold a quick vote on a motion to dismiss the charges against President Trump, as Trump urged. And it’s already proving to be a bit trickier than many expected. That’s the task Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is trying to accomplish. Make no mistake, the Senate intends to kill House Democrats’ impeachment case - but senators are still trying to figure out the exact time and cause of death.