Political Quotes

“I ask unanimous consent that the following op-ed be printed in the Record. There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows: [From the Fox News, Feb. 9, 2021] Sen. Ted Cruz: Should the Senate Exercise Impeachment Trial? Why the Answer Matters (By Ted Cruz) The constitutional question of whether a former president can be impeached or tried after he has left office is a close legal question. On balance, I believe that the better constitutional argument is that a former president can be impeached and tried--that is, that the Senate has jurisdiction to hold a trial. However, nothing in the text of the Constitution requires the Senate to choose to exercise jurisdiction. In these particular circumstances, I believe the Senate should decline to exercise jurisdiction--and so I voted to dismiss this impeachment on jurisdictional grounds. Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution gives the House ``the sole Power of impeachment,'' and Section 3 gives the Senate ``the sole Power to try all impeachments.'' At the time the Constitution was adopted, there was meaningful debate over whether impeachment encompassed so-called ``late impeachments.'' i.e. after the person had left office. The British common law, which informed the understanding of the Founders, suggests that the better answer is yes.…”