Not that they'll agree they should be bound by it, but Senate Democrats set a new precedent on Wednesday that could very well come back to bite them the next time there's a Republican in the White House.
Because they declined to proceed with the impeachment trial of DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, despite the fact that the Articles of Impeachment charged him, among other things, with knowingly making false statements to Congress — which is a felony — the Dems basically, as Senator Eric Schmitt (R-MO) put it, torched the Constitution and bulldozed 200 years of precedent.
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Following the debacle, the Dems scurried out of the upper chamber, but the Republicans stuck around to expound a bit upon what had just happened. And Senator John Kennedy (R-LA), in the way that only he can, succinctly summed it up:
"What do you have to do to get impeached now? I mean, a felony is not sufficient. What's above a felony?"
"What do you have to do to get impeached now? I mean, a felony is not sufficient. What's above a felony?" -- Sen. John Kennedy
— Susie Moore ⚾️🌻🐶 (@SmoosieQ) April 17, 2024
And, as it so often does, my mind immediately defaulted to music mode and heard "More Than a Felony" with a nod to Boston (the band, not the town). So, to Senator Kennedy's point, I guess going forward, in order to be impeached, an official will need to commit more than a felony — perhaps an "ultra felony"? Either way, it looks like we'll see our Mayorkas walkin' away.
This “Moore to the Point” commentary aired on NewsTalkSTL on Friday, April 19th. Audio included below.
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