Romney tight-lipped on impeachment vote, but says Trump's actions warrant trial
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) didn't provide a clear hint about how he'll likely vote as a juror in former President Donald Trump's upcoming Senate impeachment trial, telling CNN's Dana Bash on Sunday's edition of State of the Union that he'll wait to see the facts and evidence. But he did at least seem open to the possibility of voting to convict, which would be familiar territory for the senator. Romney, of course, was the lone Republican senator to do so in Trump's first impeachment trial, joining his Democratic colleagues on one article.
First, Romney explained that, unlike some of his Republican colleagues, he believes a post-presidency impeachment trial is constitutional and that the House was well within grounds to impeach Trump after the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol riot. If inciting an insurrection isn't an impeachable offense, Romney asked, then what is?
Bash also asked Romney about his fellow Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), who played significant roles in propping up Trump's unfounded claims that the presidential election was stolen from him by launching Electoral College challenges, which were interrupted by the Capitol siege. Romney didn't appear to be in favor of some form of formal punishment for Cruz and Hawley, but said he thinks history and voters will provide judgment. Tim O'Donnell
The Week
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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
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