tv U.S. Senate Senators Consider First Impeachment Article Against DHS... CSPAN April 20, 2024 9:12pm-10:01pm EDT
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our republic has the senate dismissed or tabled articles of impeachment when the impeached individual was alive and not res resigned. as senator schumer said in 2020, a fair trial has witnesses, relevant documents as part of the record, a fair trial seeks the truth, nothing more, nothing less. i will not assist senator schumer in setting our constitution ablaze and bulldozing 200 years of precedents. therefore, i object. mr. schumer: madam president. the presiding officer: objection is heard. mr. schumer: madam president, i raise a point of order that impeachment article 1 does not allege conduct that rises to the level of a high crime or misdemeanor as required under article 2, section 4 of the united states constitution and is therefore unconstitutional. the presiding officer: under the press depths and -- precedents and practices of the senate, the
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chair has no power or authority to pass on such a point of order. the chair therefore under the precedence of the senate submits the question to the senate. is the point of order well taken? >> this quorum call continues. we're waiting for center speaker you are hearing the roll call of the names of the united states senators as they go through this quorum call, even though there's obviously a quorum on the floor due to earlier productions of impeachment trial. sey. mr. cassidy. ms. collins. >> explained we are and why this is a quorum call despite what we heard from senator schumer not too long ago.
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>> basically to buy time on the senate floor some republican senators can figure out how to respond to this move right here. schumer is raising a point of order that the first article of impeachment is unconstitutional. because it does not allege a high crime or misdemeanor. that's this data set by the constitution. patty murray as you just showed says she doesn't have the power to decide the question. she's going to ask for the senatens to vote on whether the point of ordern. is valid. if the senate votes to sustain schumer's point of order it to eat it effectively dismisses the first article of impeachment, then schumer will move forward with the point of order similar point of order against the second article of impeachment. if that is sustained by separate vote, both charges will be dismissed and the senate trial will be effectively over.
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>> this could essentially become and even speedier trial in what senator schumer was offering in that original statement that he made? >> well, what schumer offered which is set aside debate time to give republicans an opportunity to vote on some trial resolutions sponsored by mike lee and ted cruz to basically either hold a full senate trial or to refer the impeachment to the special committee. but as you saw on the floor freshman senator eric schmitt republican of missouri objected to that unanimous to agreement. so because of that there is no structure for the trial and schumer is moving ahead with a point of order basically to declare the articles of impeachment unconstitutional. what's interesting is schumer is raising a point of order to dismiss the charges. by doing so republicans don't have an opportunity to offer their own points of order. he is preempting them here so they really can't do much in way
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of protest or to drag the proceedings out if, in fact, this point of order is sustained. >> and our point of orders a simple majority vote in the senate? >> yes. under senate impeachment rules all matters are decided by majority vote except for conviction or acquittal. as you know that requires two-thirds vote of the senate to convict or remove a federal officer from office. >> come back to eric schmitt objection, was at expected, do you know? >> well, you know, they've been trying to work out a deal on debate and vote on trial resolutions since yesterday. it looks like almost everyone was in board except for schmidt, and schmidt told reporters downstairs shortly before the vote that he would not agree to the uc. at the time he objected it wasn't a surprise that there was something that was revealed by schmitt only a short time before he objected.
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>> as you know the cameras controlled by the senate and we have a high shot of the dice here. did you get a sense of what the reaction was to the objection and chuck schumer's response and offering this motion and response to that objection? >> well, i mean, from my colleague who is in the chamber he sent me some color and said after that happened senators immediately started to huddle and figure out next steps. there was a huddle on the floor between senate republican whip john thune, ted cruz, mike lee, john kennedy and mcconnell's chief of staff, john cornyn who was hoping to become the next republican majority leader. he was part of those conversations. so there was, there were certainly some frenzied huddling on the floor, you know, and so in the meantime jon tester who is a critical vote here over and
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snuck a bag of peanut butter m&ms out of cory booker subtest. at some of the floor activity. the outcome is a foregone conclusion. huckabee senate trial so i think senators are waiting for this be over with. >> hill.com as we can go to read his reporting and out of his colleague. always great comfort in the hill. thanks for filling us in, alex bolton. >> thanks for having me on. mr. wicker. mr. wyden.
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-- >> are -- we are in a non-debatable position? >> my motion is to change that so we can debate the law and what the law says, i move that the senate produces a closed session to allow for deliberation on the question as required impeachment rule 24. >> majority leader? >> in our previous request we gave your side a chance for debate in public. where it should be. your side objected. we are moving forward. >> the question is on the motion. >> is there a sufficient second? there is a sufficient second, call the role.
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mr. daines. ms. duckworth. mr. durbin. ms. ernst. mr. fetterman. mrs. fisher. ms. gillibrand. mrs. graham. mr. grassley. mr. hagerty. ms. howson. mr. hawley. mr. heinrich. mr. hickenlooper. mr. ono. mr. hoeven. ms. hyde-smith. mrs. johnson. mr. kaine. mr. kelly. mr. kennedy. mr. king. ms. klobuchar. mr. lankford. mr. lee. mr. lujan.
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ms. lamont. mr. manchin. mr. markey. mr. marshall. >> currently in a roll call vote voting on senator ted cruz, the republican of texas, his motion to proceed to a closed session to consider senate majority leader chuck schumer's motion that the impeachment article is unconstitutional deciding whether to go to closed session, and that after that. we expect the senate majority leader chuck schumer to continue with his push to make the trial, we are here on c-span two watching live. mr. rubio. >> mr. sanders. mr. shots. mr. schmitt.
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>> the nays are 59,, the emotion is not agreed to, the motion made by the majority leader is on the point of order. senator from louisiana? >> i have a motion. i think my motion takes precedent. having heard senator schumer's allegations which in my judgment are specious about the constitutionality of these impeachment proceedings, we find ourselves in the awkward position because we are in an
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agreement -- impeachment proceedings and unable to discuss in public the merits of senator schumer's claimant at the same time, my democratic friends have refused to go into closed session so we cannot discuss. for that reason, i move we adorn this court of impeachment immediately. until 12:00 noon on tuesday, april 30th and ask -- >> is there a sufficient second? the clerk will call the roll. >> mr. barrasso? mr. bennet? ms. blackburn? mr. blumenthal? mr. booker? mr. boozman? mr. braun? mrs. britt?
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ms. gillibrand? mrs. graham? mr. grassley? mr. hagerty? ms. athens? ? mr. hawley? mr. heinrich? mr. hickenlooper? ms. hirono? mr. hoeven? ms. hyde-smith? mr. johnson? mr. kaine? mr. kelly? mr. kennedy? mr. king? ms. klobuchar? mr. lankford? mr. lee? mr. lujan? ms. lummis? mr. manchin? mr. markey? mr. marshall?
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mr. mcconnell? mr. menendez? mr. merkley? mr. marion? mr. mullin? ms. murkowski? mr. murphy? mrs. murray? mr. also? mr. padilla? mr. paul? mr. peters? mr. reed? mr. ricketts? mr. risk? mr. romney? mr. rosen? mr. rounds? mr. rubio? mr. sanders? mr. shots? mr. smit? mr. schumer? mr. scott of florida? mr. scott of south carolina? mrs. shaheen?
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a motion by ted cruz of texas, the republican, to proceed to a closed session do debate options today was defeated just a few minutes ago. 51-49 along party lines. we are waiting for the vote count here on this latest motion by the senator john kennedy. live coverage on c-span two. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations]
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>> on this vote, the yeas are 49, the notion is not agreed to. >> they swore and knows to do impartial justice according to the constitution -- an oath to do impartial justice according to the constitution of the laws of this country. we have agreed to a level of duty for our formal work and as a court of impeachment, not to speak, not to debate, but to listen.
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the case against the accused, and to his defense. at this point, any trial in the country, the prosecution presents the evidence of the case, counsel for the defense does the same. the jury remained silent as it listens. this is what our rules require of us as well. the senate has not had the opportunity to perform this duty. the senate will not hear the house managers present the details of their case against secretary mayorkas. but he willingly abused his office and lied about the extent of the failure. likewise, we will not hear the secretary's representatives present the defense to which he is entitled. our colleagues know that we are
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obligated to take these proceedings seriously. this is what our growth prescribes -- oath prescribes and i would urge each of our colleagues to consider that this is what the framers actually envisioned. the power of impeachment is one of the most delicate balance is our constitutional system strikes with a portion of the american legal sovereign electoral authority, it purchases a safeguard against a malpractice, and it gives the senate the power and the duty to decide. this process must not be abused and must not be short-circuited. history will not judge this moment well. therefore i moved to table the point of order and ask for the yeas and nays. >> there is a sufficient second, the clerk will call the roll.
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ms. cortez. mr. cotton. mr. cramer. mr. crapo. mr. cruz. mr. daines. ms. duckworth. mr. durbin. ms. ernst. mr. federman. mrs. fisher. ms. gillibrand. mr. graham. mistress grassley. mr. hagerty. mr. hawley. mr. heinrich. mr. hickenlooper. mr. ono. mr. hoeven. mr. hyde and smith. mr. johnson. mr. kaine. mr. kelly. mr. kennedy. mr. king. ms. klobuchar. mr. lankford.
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mr. lee. mr. lujan. islamists. mr. manchin. mr. markey. mr. mcconnell. mr. menendez. mr. merkley. mr. mullins. mr. michalski. mr. murphy. mrs. murray. mr. padilla. mr. paul. mr. peters. mr. reed. mr. ricketts. mr. risch. mr. romney. ms. rosen. mr. rounds. mr. rubio. mr. sanders. mr. shots. mr. smith.
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>> that was a roll call vote on mitch mcconnell's motion to table senator chuck schumer's constitutional point of order that would recall the senate majority leader's point of order with the article one of the impeachment articles against alejandro mayorkas was on unconstitutional because no high crimes and misdemeanors were alleged. that is the vote that democrats are trying to get to, this is the third motion by senate republicans to try to either delay that vote or go into a closed session or even delay the trial to allow more debate. senators cannot debate as they are sitting as a court of
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impeachment. here we are, watching these various motions. two have been offered by republicans have been defeated on party-line vote and we are awaiting the results of the latest vote. again on the motion to table chuck schumer's point of order when it comes to the articles of impeachment. live coverage on c-span two. . the motion to table is not agreed to, the motion before the senate is the point of order, the question is on whether the point of order is taken. is there a sufficient second? there is. call the roll. >> mr. baldwin, mr. brosseau
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article. a reminder, the article about alejandro mayorkas saying that he refused to comply with the laws willfully and systemically not upholding the nation's immigration laws. if that is sustained, it would effectively dismiss article one of the impeachment against alejandro mayorkas. two part impeachment, two articles, the previous votes to delay this trial or defeat chuck schumer's point of order have all been defeated on party-line vote's. we will see what happens with the vote count in a few minutes. live coverage here on c-span two.
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