Sen. Joe Manchin called on the Senate to censure President Trump over his July 25 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The West Virginia Democrat delivered remarks on the Senate floor on Monday during the closing arguments of Trump’s impeachment trial. Manchin, a centrist Democrat and occasional ally of the president, said he was still uncertain as to whether he would vote to remove Trump from office.
“I must be realistic. I see no path to the 67 votes required to impeach President Trump and haven’t since this trial started,” Manchin said. “However, I do believe a bipartisan majority of this body would vote to censure President Trump for his actions.”
“Censure would allow this body to unite across party lines and, as an equal branch of government, to formally denounce the president’s actions and hold him accountable,” he continued. “His behavior cannot go unchecked by the Senate, and censure would allow a bipartisan statement condemning his unacceptable behavior in the strongest terms.”
The impeachment trial against Trump is set to end later this week after the Senate voted on Friday 51-49 against subpoenaing witnesses for the trial. The vote was a win for the White House and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who pushed for a speedy resolution to the impeachment proceedings.
GOP Sens. Mitt Romney of Utah and Susan Collins of Maine joined 47 Democrats in voting to hear from witnesses.
