Last updated on July 18th, 2023 at 11:54 am
Former Republican Congressman David Jolly of Florida warned Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Thursday that if he follows Donald Trump’s lead on impeachment, the GOP could lose their Senate majority in 2020.
During a discussion with MSNBC’s Chris Matthews, Jolly said that if McConnell calls Hunter Biden, Adam Schiff and Nancy Pelosi as witnesses in the impeachment trial, he won’t just be making a joke of the institution, but he’ll put his party’s Senate majority at risk.
“If he does so, he will simply ruin the integrity of the institution of the Senate that Mitch McConnell has suggested he is trying to protect,” Jolly said.
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“You might lose those four or five seats that make a difference in the majority,” he added.
Video:
Former GOP Rep. David Jolly warns Mitch McConnell that his impeachment strategy could cost him the Senate majority. #ctl #p2 pic.twitter.com/JeOCS1dxHa
— PoliticusUSA (@politicususa) December 6, 2019
The former congressman said:
In this case, you are seeing Republicans completely overlook the truth, ignore the truth and suggest to the American people the truth simply doesn’t exist. That’s where they’re really tarnishing and ruining their reputation. Your question to Steve, though, is an intriguing one because it is not Donald Trump’s call whether or not Biden and Schiff and Nancy Pelosi get to be witnesses. It is up to the Senate to work that out. It was a contentious debate among Republicans and Democrats during the Clinton impeachment. Ultimately, Republicans only called three witnesses and they let them testify in private and then they provided video testimony during the trial. This would be a fascinating call if Mitch McConnell goes the route that Steve suggested. I’m not disagreeing with Steve. If he does so, he will simply ruin the integrity of the institution of the Senate that Mitch McConnell has suggested he is trying to protect. … For Trump, it’s always the ratings, not the polls. Trump wants the show trial. He feels like he can excel in the show trial and energizing his base. He wants that. Mitch McConnell, I’m not sure he does to Steve’s point. You might lose those four or five seats that make a difference in the majority.
The GOP will regret making a mockery of the Senate impeachment trial
Over the course of the past several months, Democrats in the House – led by Speaker Pelosi and Rep. Adam Schiff – have conducted an impeachment inquiry based on facts and credible witness testimony.
As that process reaches a conclusion in the House, Democrats have a strong case on which to base formal impeachment articles that they will likely vote on in the coming weeks. Polling shows that a majority of the American people support impeachment.
Mitch McConnell and Senate Republicans might think it helps the president and their reelection prospects to muddy up the impeachment process, but it will only remind the American people how spineless and unserious they are about fulfilling their constitutional responsibilities.
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Sean Colarossi currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and was an organizing fellow for both of President Obama’s presidential campaigns. He also worked with Planned Parenthood as an Affordable Care Act Outreach Organizer in 2014, helping northeast Ohio residents obtain health insurance coverage.
