[ad_1]
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) Joined growing calls for censorship from Hawley and Cruz this week, but said the sanctions under consideration should also extend to the six other GOP senators who have joined them to oppose the election results, including Sens. Rick Scott from Florida and Tommy Tuberville from Alabama. Although the others were less vocal on their objections, Murphy said they “all legitimized this point of view among the crowd. [of rioters] that Congress had the power to annul the election.
“If it were really just two of them, maybe the unreasonable expectation that all these rioters would have been toned down,” Murphy said, adding, “So I also don’t like the idea that all the shame is targeted at just those two senators.I think everyone who signed this letter deserves to be blamed as well.
Some Democrats have gone even further. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) said the couple should step down and if they don’t, the Senate should kick them out of the chamber, adding that they “have betrayed their oaths and encouraged a violent insurgency against our democracy. Even Senator Chris Coons of Delaware, a centrist Democrat who works closely with Republicans, called on Hawley and Cruz to step down.
Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) Was even more blunt, accusing them of trying to “stir up a violent mob for personal gain”.
The push for the consequences comes as the Senate is set to launch Trump’s second impeachment trial and begin processing President-elect Joe Biden’s Cabinet nominees and his Covid-19 relief plan.
A spokesperson for the new Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (DN.Y.) declined to comment on what Democrats might pursue as punishment for the two GOP senators once they take control of the room later this month, although several options remain on the table.
Amid the backlash, Hawley and Cruz double down on their objections and rhetoric leading to the violent riots on Capitol Hill, which resulted in the deaths of five people, including a police officer.
Cruz told POLITICO last week that he was just looking for a debate in the Senate, and that “what I was doing was the exact opposite of inciting violence.” Hawley wrote an op-ed this week stating that he maintained his objections even after the riots on Capitol Hill because “I will not bow to a lawless crowd, nor allow criminals to drown out the legitimate concerns of my constituents.
Yet their fellow Republicans viewed the senators’ election objections as more of an attempt to meet the GOP base with Trump on his way and position himself for the presidential election in 2024. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R -Ky.) Objected. their efforts and had tried to persuade GOP Conference members to vote to certify election results, in part to avoid placing senators facing re-election in 2022 in a difficult position.
Senator Mitt Romney (R-Utah) said the group of senators who opposed “will forever be seen as complicit in an unprecedented attack on our democracy,” while Senator Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) Described Hawley’s conduct as “really Silly.”
But most Republicans are unlikely to support a formal Senate conviction.
“I think it would be a partisan exercise,” said a GOP senator who was granted anonymity to frankly assess the situation. “They appear to be de facto censored in the public.”
Even if the Democrats opt against a formal sanction, they could still task the Senate Ethics Committee with investigating Hawley and Cruz. Additionally, several Democratic senators have already said they have no plans to work with the couple again on the legislation. Hawley, for example, has partnered with the Democrats in his campaign for stimulus checks.
“I will not work with these Republicans,” said Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) Bluntly. “However, it’s important to remember that there are many, many Senate Majorities of Republicans that I work with on a daily basis, and I will continue to do so.”
And regardless of the action of Congress, the two senators have already faced a major backlash. Simon & Schuster canceled the publication of Hawley’s next book and Cruz’s communications director resigned.
Additionally, former aides to Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), Whom Hawley defeated in 2018, launched a super PAC aimed at blocking Hawley’s ambitions for a higher office or for re-election to his seat. in the Senate. And former Sen. John Danforth (R-Mo.), Hawley’s Mentor, waived his support and said his efforts to help Hawley get into public office “were the biggest mistake I’ve ever made. of my life.
Burgess Everett and Marianne LeVine contributed to this report.
[ad_2]
Source link