Even if he wins the election next month, one senator hinted on Thursday that embattled Alabama candidate Roy Moore’s time in the upper chamber would likely be cut short.
Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., strongly suggested in a television appearance he believes there would be enough votes in the Senate to expel Moore should he win the seat.
“I think the Supreme Court has ruled that a duly elected senator needs to be sworn in, but then it’s up to the body itself to decide whether we want to expel a member,” Johnson divulged on CNN. “And I’m just saying what the reality of the situation is based on the folks I’m talking to, I seriously doubt that Judge Roy Moore would be serving as a United States senator for very long.”
“He just needs to face that reality,” Johnson emphasized.
The Wisconsin Republican argued allegations against Moore “sound pretty credible” and said if he were in the judge’s position he would “resign being a candidate and give the Alabama voters what they want— a Republican candidate that will actually be seated in the United States Senate.”
“The voters of Alabama are quite clear they want a Republican senator, not a Democrat one,” Johnson contended, adding, “He ought to take that into account.”
As the Washington Examiner reported Monday, expulsion requires the support of a two-thirds majority in the Senate, a threshold Johnson seems convinced the body would be able to meet.
The senator’s statement is significant as an indication that private chatter among members of the upper chamber signifies Moore’s determination to remain in the race would ultimately prove fruitless, strengthening the argument for him to drop out.
