REPUBLICANS LIKELY TO WIN THE WITNESS & DOCUMENTS CONTEST

…The Minority Leader, Chuck Schumer of New York, continues to hope they can call John Bolton to testify.

This Senate trial could easily go down as a “shame trial” if witnesses are not allowed.

The Democrats, even though they have proven their case against the president, the Senate is controlled today by the GOP.

The Dems were counting on 4 GOP US Senators to side with them.  That included Susan Collins of Maine, Senator Mitt Romney of Utah, Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, and retiring Senator Lamar Alexander of Tennessee.

Unfortunately, they must now hope that another Republican will break ranks, as Alexander has stated that he will oppose the Democratic bid to summon witnesses while acknowledging that it was: “Inappropriate for the president to ask a foreign leader to investigate his political opponent and to withhold United States aid to encourage that investigation.”

Even though Alexander’s statement is a clear description of a “quid pro quo,”  he doesn’t think it supports a case for impeachment.

Collins and Romney have already said they would vote for witnesses, Murkowski has said she will decide this morning and now Alexander has said he his going to support the president’s defense.

Senator Susan Collins of Maine, faces a tough reelection bid, and many say they don’t expect her to win in November anyway, so she may feel it is time to vote for the truth, and stop supporting the presidents actions.

Of course, the Senate Majority Leader really doesn’t care about the truth.  He just wants this trial to be over while he keeps his majority in the Senate.  That is much more important to him than who wins the trial, or who is telling the truth.

“The Constitution does not give the Senate the power to remove the president from office and ban him from this year’s ballot simply for actions that are inappropriate,” Alexander said in a statement, arguing that: “there is no need for more evidence to prove something that has already been proven.”

So, even though the issue has been proven beyond a reasonable doubt, and even though it has shown that the president was trying to get help in his election from a foreign nation, Alexander is going to support an illegal act by the US president.

Alexander then added: “Our founding documents provide for duly elected presidents who serve with ‘the consent of the governed,’ not at the pleasure of the United States Congress. Let the people decide.”

The retiring Tennessee Republican is also a very close supporter of the Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)  He was for some time, one of those four GOP senators, who had expressed support for a subpoena of individuals such as the former national security adviser John Bolton to testify about Trump’s actions toward Ukraine.  Absent his support, and barring any major surprises, McConnell is believed to have the votes to defeat the Democratic effort to extend the trial and summon additional testimony and documents.

Speaking yesterday, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said he believed President Trump's legal team is worried about a vote to call witnesses. But it’s looking like the president’ defense team that has been fighting hard for the president, but most of the time, it was not by showing their strong hold on the facts.  It was mostly due to their efforts to criticize the Democrat’s impeachment process, not to go after the facts that were presented by the Democrats.

Uncertainty is surrounding what would happen if there is a 50-50 tie on the motion to hear more evidence.  That vote that will occur this evening.  The Republicans have been warily eyeing the Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts Jr..  They are hoping he will not weigh in to break a tie if three GOP senators side with Democrats on the effort.  The Supreme Court Justice has that ability if he wants to get in the middle of a truly partisan issue.

Justice Roberts usually tries to avoid these issue, but he was the vote that allowed Obamacare to win when it came up for a vote by the full court.  So, anything could happen.  Back when there was the 1860's impeachment of President Andrew Johnson, the then Supreme Court Chief Justice did vote to break several trial ties.

But if that should happen, the Majority Leader McConnell can call for a vote to counter a Chief Justice tie-breaker vote, so who knows what will happen.

This whole scenario appeared entirely possible last night.  Republicans have expect Senator Romney to join Senator Collins, and they are also closely watching Senator Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), who pushed through a swarm of reporters around 11 PM.  She was vowing to return to her office, “put some eye drops in” and “keep reading” to make a decision that won’t be coming until this AM

Collins, who indicated earlier this week that she was likely to back calling witnesses, has said since December that she wants to follow the “Clinton model” for impeachment.  This included questions of witnesses in closed-door depositions. Throughout this trial, she has refused to comment on Trump’s behavior or the charges leveled against him.  She explained to reporters that as an independent juror, she must stay silent until the end when she can vote.  “I believe hearing from certain witnesses would give each side the opportunity to more fully and fairly make their case, resolve any ambiguities, and provide additional clarity. Therefore, I will vote in support of the motion to allow witnesses and documents to be subpoenaed,” she said in a statement.

This four-term senator faces her toughest reelection bids this year because she voted for Trump’s tax bill and to confirm Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh.  Christine Blasey Ford, in her account, said that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her while they were high school students in the 1980s.  Kavanaugh strenuously denied Ford’s claim, calling it an “orchestrated political hit.”  But more women did come to support Ford’s statements.  Unfortunately, they appeared after Kavanaugh was voted in.

Senator Collins, who brands herself as an independent, has gone against her leadership before.  She has also has been praised by some Democrats for voting with Murkowski and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ.) in 2017 against a GOP effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act. She also backed abortion rights and has been a proponent of gay rights.

Collins is also in the state of Maine that voted for Hillary Clinton by 3 points in 2016, and Barack Obama by 15 points in 2012.  Sara Gideon, the speaker of Maine’s legislature, announced a bid with a video that called into question Collins’s carefully tended moderate image.

Lamar Alexander, on the other hand, has sought to build a reputation as a deal-maker in his more than 15 years serving in the Senate. He stepped down from a leadership position in 2011 to focus his energy on more bipartisan projects.   And as chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, he has worked across the aisle on health care and other issues.

Democrats had previously looked at Alexander as a potential ally on the witness issue due to his poor relationship with Trump. He did not endorse Trump, and he has never fashioned himself as a supporter.

While Alexander appeared to accept House Democrats’ claims that Trump tried to strong-arm Ukraine into doing his bidding with an announcement of an investigation of a political competitor, Alexander said the public should decide how to handle it in the voting booth. 

If the witnesses and documents are not allowed in this Senate trial, this will go down as a “shame trial” and will further divide this nation.

Copyright G. Ater 2020