Murkowski says it would be ‘appropriate’ to ban Trump from returning to office

His. Lisa MurkowskiLisa Ann MurkowskiKinzinger says he is ‘at complete peace’ after McConnell impeachment vote: Trump impeachment trial set to begin after Biden is sworn in McConnell says he is undecided on whether to vote for condemn Trump MORE (R-Alaska) said this week that she thought it would be “appropriate” to block President TrumpDonald TrumpCotton: Senate lacks power to hold impeachment trial once Trump steps down Marjorie Taylor Greene says she will present articles of impeachment against Biden’s acting director ICE resigns weeks after entering in function to occupy a future post, adding that she believes he has committed an impenetrable offense.

Murkowski did not say whether she would vote to convict Trump at the end of a Senate trial after a bipartisan coalition in the House impeached Trump for “willfully inciting violence against the United States government.”

“What I’m going to tell you is that what I believe is that this president committed a reprehensible offense through his words of January 6 and leading up to January 6, when he was not honest. to the American people about the election and the election results, ”Murkowski told KTUU, an Alaskan television station, on Wednesday.

She added that preventing Trump from assuming federal office again would be “one of the most consequential actions we could take” and would be “appropriate … given what we have seen of his actions and his behavior. failure to uphold the Constitution. “

Trump falsely claimed for weeks that the election was “rigged” and urged his supporters to march on Capitol Hill last week as Vice President Pence and lawmakers counted the electoral college votes. Rioters raped the building, suspending proceedings and forcing lawmakers to evacuate the House and Senate chambers.

A spokesperson for Murkowski did not immediately respond to a question about his comments.

It would take a two-thirds vote in the Senate to make Trump the first president to be sentenced in an impeachment trial.

If that happens, soon to be the majority leader Charles SchumerChuck SchumerTrump Calls for ‘NO Violence’ Amid Threats of Threats Around Inauguration Amazon Cites Death Threats to Prevent Talking from Staying Offline ‘I’ve Seen My Life Flashing Before My Eyes’: An Oral History of the Capitol Attack PLUS (DN.Y.) has promised he will hold a second vote to prevent Trump from taking federal office again. This vote would only require a simple majority.

Some legal scholars have also argued that Congress could bar Trump from re-assuming federal office, regardless of the impeachment process, under the 14th Amendment because of wording that states that no member of the office should stand. will be engaged in “an insurgency or rebellion” against the United States.

Schumer, however, has not publicly raised the attempt to prevent Trump from performing future duties separately from a conviction in the Senate trial, which is expected to begin only after the president-elect. Joe bidenJoe BidenCotton: Senate lacks power to hold impeachment trial once Trump steps down Marjorie Taylor Greene says she will present articles of impeachment against Biden’s acting director ICE resigns weeks after entering in function is sworn in on Wednesday.

Murkowski is part of a coalition of GOP senators considered likely to vote to condemn Trump, although she said in both Wednesday’s interview and in a statement Thursday that she would listen to both sides present their arguments. when the Senate would sit as a jury. She will then decide how she will vote.

“When the article of impeachment arrives in the Senate, I will follow the oath I took when I was sworn in as a US Senator. I will listen carefully and consider the arguments on both sides, and then announce. how I will vote, ”Murkowski said in a separate statement Thursday.