6 GOP senators broke ranks to vote that Trump’s trial is constitutional
The 56-44 final vote marked the closing chapter of Tuesday’s proceedings, with the Senate adjourned until noon on Wednesday. All but six Republican senators voted that the trial was unconstitutional because Trump is no longer president. It was the second time such a vote was taken after Sen. Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican, forced a vote on the same question last month.
Here’s which Republican senators voted that the impeachment trial was consistent with the Constitution:
“House managers were focused, they were organized,” and “made a compelling argument,” Cassidy said after the vote. In contrast, he added, “President Trump’s team were disorganized. They did everything they could but to talk about the question at hand and when they talked about it, they kind of glided over, almost as if they were embarrassed of their arguments.”
Several Republican senators slammed the arguments offered by Trump’s legal team as lackluster. Murkowski said she “was really stunned at the first attorney who presented for former President Trump,” attorney Bruce Castor.
“I couldn’t figure out where he was going, spent 45 minutes going somewhere, but I don’t think he helped with us better understanding where he was coming from on the constitutionality of this,” she added. “And I felt that (fellow Trump attorney David) Schoen did a … better job but I think they sure had a missed opportunity with their first, first attorney there.”
Texas Republican Sen. John Cornyn bluntly told reporters, “I thought the President’s lawyer the first lawyer just rambled on and on and on and didn’t really address the constitutional argument — finally the second lawyer got around to it, and I thought, did an effective job.” He quickly added, “But I’ve seen a lot of lawyers and a lot of arguments and that was it was not one of the finest I’ve seen.”
Trump was unhappy with Castor’s opening argument on the Senate floor, according to two people familiar with his reaction. Trump was almost screaming as Castor made meandering arguments that struggled to get at the heart of his defense team’s argument, which is supposed to be over the constitutionality of holding a trial for a president no longer in office.
Schoen, who spoke second, was initially going to present first, not Castor, according to two people familiar with the plan.
Paul’s motion was killed on a 55-45 vote, with five Republicans joining all Democrats, meaning 45 Republicans voted for Paul’s effort. Romney, Sasse, Collins, Murkowski and Toomey crossed party lines to join with Democrats on that vote.
This story has been updated with additional details.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this statement incorrectly stated when the previous vote on the trial’s constitutionality took place. It was last month.
CNN’s Kristin Wilson, Jeremy Herb, Lauren Fox, Clare Foran, Ted Barrett, Kaitlan Collins, Annie Grayer and Sarah Fortinsky contributed to this report.
