GOP Sen. Tim Scott opposes impeaching Trump
Tim Scott #TimScott
Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) announced Tuesday that he will not vote to convict in President Trump’s second impeachment trial as the House moves to impeach over Trump’s role in last week’s riot at the Capitol.
Scott echoed claims by other GOP lawmakers that impeaching and removing the president on charges of inciting insurrection would further deepen political divisions in the U.S.
“The Democrat-led impeachment talks happening in the House right now fly in direct opposition to what President-elect Joe Biden has been calling for all year,” Scott tweeted Tuesday. “An impeachment vote will only lead to more hate and a deeply fractured nation.”
House Democrats have said they will pass a single article of impeachment on Wednesday in response to last week’s siege on the Capitol by Trump supporters who the Democrats say were egged on by the president.
Some of Scott’s GOP Senate colleagues have called for the president to resign, although none have yet said they will vote to convict.
Republican Sens. Pat Toomey (Pa.) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) have called for the president’s resignation, while The New York Times reported Tuesday that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has said he believes the president committed impeachable offenses.
On the House side, Rep. John Katko (R-N.Y.) became the first Republican to say he will vote for impeachment on Tuesday. The president was impeached in 2019 with no House Republican support.