The Post Millennial —
Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told the office of Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer on Wednesday that the Senate will not be reconvening early in order to impeach President Donald Trump before he leaves office.
The latest attempt to impeach Trump comes after he was accused of inciting a riot on Jan. 6 which led to the storming of the Capitol in Washington, DC by pro-Trump protesters under the belief that the 2020 election was rigged in Biden’s favor.
McConnell said that the Senate would only be reconvening if there was unanimous consent among elected Senators, a likely unreachable target as most Republicans oppose impeachment, The Hill reports. Trump has barely a week left in office.
The report of McConnell’s statement contradicts words Schumer delivered on Tuesday where he said he and McConnell may agree to reconvene the Senate in an emergency session. It also brings questions to reports that McConnell was pleased with the impeachment effort under the belief that it would make it easier to purge the Republican Party of Trump and Trumpism.
“There was legislation passed in 2004 that allows the Senate minority and majority leader to jointly reconvene the Senate in times of emergency. This is a time of emergency,” Schumer suggested. “I’ve asked him to call the Senate back — all he needs is my agreement, I’m still minority leader.”
The House of Representatives is debating and voting on the order of impeachment on Wednesday. If those articles are approved, they would need to pass the Senate with a majority vote before the president would lose his post. If the Senate does not reconvene, it doesn’t matter how many Republicans or Democrats in the House vote for Trump’s ouster.
The Senate is not scheduled to reconvene until Jan. 19, one day before President-elect Biden is set to be sworn into office.
