Susan Collins: “I opposed Majority Leader Schumer's constitutional points of order because I have concerns about the precedents they set…”

“I opposed Majority Leader Schumer's constitutional points of order because I have concerns about the precedents they set for future impeachments. Once a majority of the House of Representatives votes to adopt Articles of Impeachment, the Senate should fulfill its constitutional role to ``try all impeachments.'' Simply ending an impeachment proceeding without any consideration of the substance of the allegations--as the Senate Democratic majority did today--sets a terrible precedent that could be exploited in the future. Today, not only did the Senate fail to perform its constitutional duty, but it also set an additional precedent that something as serious as a felony is not a high crime or misdemeanor under the Constitution. That is why I voted against both points of order. Let me make clear that my votes today do not reflect my views on the merits of this matter, which I would only consider after a presentation of the evidence at trial. I believe the Senate will come to regret today's votes to shirk our constitutional responsibility and inappropriately short-circuit the constitutional process for considering Articles of Impeachment adopted by the House of Representatives. ____________________”