The House Judiciary Committee has voted to send two articles of impeachment against President Trump to the full chamber for a vote, which could take place as early as next week. The House will almost certainly vote to approve the articles, and then the effort will move to the Senate, where Republicans should hold a vote as soon as possible.
Given the House’s Democratic lean, it’s no surprise that impeachment has gotten this far. In the Senate, however, Republicans won’t buy it. Many of them have made it clear that they’d like to expedite the process and immediately vote to acquit the president. Then again, there has been mention of drawing things out on purpose through the Democratic presidential primaries to keep the public eye away from the Democratic contenders, especially while Republicans control the Senate trial.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell needs only 51 votes to end the impeachment trial, and he probably has them. Democrats would need 67 votes to convict and remove Trump from office. That isn’t going to happen. Democrats only have 44 votes for sure and probably no more than 46 on a good day.
One possibility Republicans have considered is foregoing witnesses entirely, an option that has made some Democrats nervous. Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham is one of the Republicans in favor of rushing the impeachment trial, telling the Washington Examiner that he’d like nothing more than to “end this.”
Given that the Republicans’ defense of Trump has largely focused on the “sham trial” and “waste of time” that is impeachment, this would probably be the right move. Recent polls suggest voters are just as tired of impeachment as Republicans are, and conducting the trial quickly would show these voters that Republicans listened to their concerns.
Some Republicans, however, have urged GOP leadership to take advantage of the trial and shift its focus to House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff, the anonymous Ukraine whistleblower, and the relationship between the two, or to Hunter Biden and former Vice President Joe Biden’s past dealings with Ukraine. This is a foolish suggestion and one that proves there are just as many nonserious actors in the GOP as there are in the Democratic Party.
Impeachment will move forward, and the Senate will have the opportunity to end it. As Graham said, let’s get this over with.
