A key swing-vote Republican senator told reporters she was offended by a claim levied by one of the House impeachment managers that Republicans are engaging in a “cover-up” during the trial against President Donald Trump, and questioned why Democrats didnt go to the courts to obtain more evidence.
“I took it as very offensive,” Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) told local media on Jan. 22. “As one who is listening attentively and working hard to get to a fair process, I was offended.”
Along with Sens. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) and Susan Collins (R-Maine), Murkowski has widely been seen as a potential swing-vote in the Senate trial after she bucked the Republican party line to vote against confirming Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court in 2018.
However, it appears House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadlers (D-N.Y.) speech during the trial struck a nerve when he accused Republican senators of “voting for a cover-up, voting to deny witnesses, an absolutely indefensible vote, obviously a treacherous vote.”
In another interview, Murkowski told CNN on Jan. 23 she had concerns about why the House didnt try to seek witnesses or documents in their case by seeking a remedy in the courts.
“The House made a decision that they didnt want to slow things down by having to go through the courts. And yet now theyre basically saying, “You guys gotta go through the courts. We didnt, but we need you to,” Murkowski said.
House Democrats have said they wanted to move forward with their articles of impeachment without waiting for court orders to be handed down because the process could be too long. Trump and the White House have said he has executive privilege and doesnt need to adhere to every subpoena issued by the House.
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) echoed Murkowskis comments about Nadlers accusation, suggesting it was without precedent.
“I mean, thats an extraordinary thing to say on the floor of the United States Senate, the middle of the trial, and thats what drew the rebuke, and rightly so,” Hawley told reporters, referring to Chief Justice John Roberts admonishing House manageRead More – Source
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