#MOTION TO DISMISS IMPEACHMENT HOW TO#
#MOTION TO DISMISS IMPEACHMENT TRIAL#
#MOTION TO DISMISS IMPEACHMENT FREE#

#MOTION TO DISMISS IMPEACHMENT TRIAL#

These rules dictate the ins and outs of a trial to a great degree of specificity. So how committed will McConnell and his comrades be to staging a thorough and fair proceeding? Could they rig it in Trump’s favor? Given the Senate rules, they could try.Īny impeachment trial is governed by the Rules of Procedure and Practice in the Senate When Sitting on Impeachment Trials, which was last revised in 1986.

This time, House Dems will be delivering articles of impeachment to a Senate controlled by a party loyal to Trump and hostile to the prospect of booting him out of office.

#MOTION TO DISMISS IMPEACHMENT HOW TO#

Though he has recognized the duty of the Senate to address-and not ignore-articles of impeachment, he may well have a trick or two in mind about how to conduct the trial. McConnell is renowned for his wily mastering of Senate rules-and for his willingness to bust norms for political gain. The matter was sent to the Senate, which was also in the hands of Republicans, most of whom supported the impeachment (and conviction) of Clinton. After House Republicans in 1998 enthusiastically approved two articles of impeachment accusing Clinton of lying to a grand jury and obstructing justice in the Monica Lewinsky scandal. But what sort of a trial might that be, if the Republican Senate majority did not truly want to mount one? Last time Congress went through an impeachment, both chambers were controlled by the same party. When House Democrats began raising the volume on impeachment talk earlier this year-especially after the release of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report, which detailed various alleged obstructions of justice committed by Trump-an idea was kicked around by pundits and commentators: What if the House approved articles of impeachment and McConnell refused to hold a trial? Two weeks ago, though, McConnell publicly noted that in the event of a House impeachment, Senate rules would compel the upper body of Congress to stick to the Constitution and put Trump on trial. But one X-factor in the impeachment process-which so far has received little attention-is that Senate rules afford McConnell and the Republicans plenty of opportunity to derail an impeachment trial and turn the proceedings into a sham. Action in Congress rarely occurs speedily. That, too, might seem an overly ambitious timeline.

#MOTION TO DISMISS IMPEACHMENT FREE#

Fight disinformation: Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily newsletter and follow the news that matters.Īt a lunchtime gathering of Senate Republicans on Wednesday, Mitch McConnell had some news to share about impeachment: Should the House Democrats vote to impeach Donald Trump by Thanksgiving-which appears to be House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s preferred though perhaps hard-to-meet schedule-the Senate could start and quickly conduct the trial of Trump and wrap it up by Christmas.

Motion to dismiss impeachment