Mike Lee: Senate impeachment trial will end in Trump's acquittal
Impeachment critics argue Trump cannot be tried after leaving office
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, speculated that while former President Donald Trump will undergo a "lengthy" impeachment trial in the Senate, he will ultimately be acquitted of inciting an insurrection against the government.
During an appearance on "America's Newsroom", Lee indicated the text surrounding whether a former president can be impeached isn't clear and that U.S. senators should operate under an "abundance of caution" in order to avoid future abuse of constitutional law for partisan purposes.
Trump's lawyers are expected to argue that point, while House impeachment managers are prepped to refute it, in an effort that critics argue is intended to prevent a rumored 2024 Trump campaign.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}TRUMP'S IMPEACHMENT TRIAL: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
MIKE LEE: "It begins with a lengthy diatribe against the former president and I think it ends in his acquittal. Look, one of the things that we'll be beginning with today is talking about the fact that there is a constitutional jurisdictional question in front of us. The constitutional text itself is ambiguous. It could be read one way or the other. I think it should be read in an abundance of caution to make sure that it’s not abused for partisan political purposes in future congresses with future presidents and future ex-officials ...
If we start saying right now that there is no time limit on the appropriate time frame for impeaching a president, you can impeach a former president. I think it will take us to a place that's not good for the country. What we need right now is unity and this doesn't help.
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The fact that he was still president while he was impeached ignores a couple of facts. First of all, they didn't actually send the articles of impeachment over to the Senate, thus the trial couldn't even begin until after he had left office. If they had really wanted to make sure this continued they should have sent them over immediately. They didn't do that. Moreover, the interpretation that they're using, one that says it doesn't matter when we try the president ... the Constitution doesn't make any meaningful distinction between someone who has just left office and someone out who has been out of office for a year or two years or much longer."