Republicans are planning to hold a fair impeachment trial in the Senate, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell nevertheless has a contingency plan, should Democrats attempt turn the trial into a “circus” by violating rules or “engage in any shenanigans.” Rules proposed by McConnell would allow for President Trump’s lawyers to move immediately to dismiss the impeachment charges if they choose to.
A source close to Mitch McConnell told Breitbart News: “My pal Cocaine Mitch is again proving his mettle when it comes to outmaneuvering leftist Democrats with this kill switch.” They added, “If they even think about stepping out of line and being unfair in the slightest, it’s time to engage said kill switch and end this nonsense once and for all.”
“I am familiar with the resolution as it stood a day or two ago,” Senator Josh Hawley told Axios. “My understanding is that the resolution will give the president’s team the option to either move to judgment or to move to dismiss at a meaningful time…”
According to a Republican leadership aide, “The White House has the right to make motions under the regular order, including a motion to dismiss, right after the resolution is adopted because a motion to dismiss is a motion permitted by the impeachment rules.”
A former Trump White House official also said that the kill switch will give Senate Republicans “the tools they need to help McConnell keep the trial on the straight and narrow. McConnell has proven time and time again he is a more effective Leader than Pelosi is Speaker. This resolution ensures the President and his team has every tool at their disposal.”
Hawley expects the so-called “kill switch” to be in the final rules that get adopted. If it isn’t, he would be “very, very surprised,” and says he might not vote for the resolution. There are no indications that Senate Republicans actually want to or plan to dismiss the charges outright, but Hawley is concerned that without having the option to move to dismiss or move to judgment Adam Schiff would have too much control over the trial.
“There is little or no sentiment in the Republican conference for a motion to dismiss,” McConnell said last week. “Our members feel that we have an obligation to listen to the arguments.”
It is unlikely that Republicans even have the votes to dismiss the charges—at least outright on day one. Moderate Republican Susan Collins has expressed opposition to such a move. However, should Democrats get out of hand, that might give her and other moderate or blue-state Republicans political cover to vote to dismiss the charges later on. Collins is facing a tough reelection battle in her home state of Maine after her vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh made her a target of the radical left.
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Matt Margolis is the author of Trumping Obama: How President Trump Saved Us From Barack Obama’s Legacy and the bestselling book The Worst President in History: The Legacy of Barack Obama. You can follow Matt on Twitter @MattMargolis
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