Roy Blunt: “later today I will vote to acquit the President on the charges of the two Articles of Impeachment. A not- guilty…”

“later today I will vote to acquit the President on the charges of the two Articles of Impeachment. A not- guilty verdict, as every Senator on this floor has known for some time, was always what would happen in a House-driven, partisan impeachment process. Less than a year ago, the Speaker of the House said that we should not go through this process unless something was compelling, unless something was overwhelming, unless something was bipartisan. I think the Speaker was exactly right then, and I hope all future Speakers look at that guidance as we think about this process of impeachment. In the first 180 years of the Constitution, individual Members talked about impeachment of Presidents--maybe of almost every President--but the Congress only seriously touched this topic one time--one time in 180 years. In the last 46 years, Presidential impeachment has been before the country three times, and each case has been less compelling than the one before it. We don't want partisan impeachment to become an exercise that happens when one party--not the party of the President--happens to have a majority of the votes in the House of Representatives. Impeachment is fundamentally a political process. The Members of the Senate meet no standards for a regular jury. The jury can override the judge. Two-thirds of the Senate is necessary to remove the President.…”