In a surprising move, the soon-to-be Senate Minority Leader and nearly former Grim Reaper Mitch McConnell (R-KY) decided to come down hard on Donald Trump’s neck. Of course, this POTUS has mere hours to serve in the Oval Office. But what if Moscow Mitch voted to convict the bad-boy president?
In his remarkably grating monotone, McConnell not only admitted Trump’s involvement in the January 6 insurrection, he said that the former tweeter-in-chief provoked the violent crowd that swarmed the Capitol Building and terrified both senators and representatives.
McConnell stood on the Senate floor Tuesday for the first time since the homegrown terrorists invaded and threatened the legislators. He said:
‘The last time the Senate convened, we had just reclaimed the Capitol from violent criminals who tried to stop Congress from doing our duty. The mob was fed lies. They were provoked by the president and other powerful people.’
The Kentucky senator’s words came just prior to Trump’s impeachment trial. Of course, he claimed he had not decided how he would vote in that trial. The House impeached him in a matter of days.
McConnell referred to Trump feeding the crowd lies. This president and his circle of supporters claimed that he had not lost the election, that it had been stolen from him. He claimed a cabal of election fraud resulted in President-elect Joe Biden’s win.
Trump invited thousands of his followers to come to a rally near to the White House on January 6. He revved them up with strong claims of being wronged:
‘They rigged it like they have never rigged an election [and said] we won this election and we won it by a landslide.’
Then, he sent thousands of them to take the symbol of America’s freedom, the Capitol Building, saying that he would be with them. Naturally, he returned to the White House to watch events unfold on television.
Six individuals died as a direct and/or indirect result of the angry rioting mob. Two police officers died, and one woman was trampled in the crowd.
McConnell accused the rioters who crashed into the building:
‘[Rioters] use fear and violence to stop a specific proceeding of the first branch of the federal government which they did not like.’
The legislators were formally counting the Electoral College votes. Then, Vice President Mike Pence would declare Biden the winner, a formality. Pence could not give the election to the president. He did not have that power. Trump was livid, and as a result of his words, the mob chanted “Hang Mike Pence! Hang Mike Pence!” They were also hunting House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) to assassinate her.
The insurgents broke windows to enter the building and overcame the Capitol’s thin line of security. The lack of security manpower will be another investigation.
After the mob left and the building was cleared, all of the lawmakers returned and certified Biden’s win.
On Tuesday, McConnell said:
‘We stood together and said an angry mob would not get veto power over the rule of law in our nation, not even for one night.’
On January 6, after the invasion, McConnell stood on the Senate floor and said that the 2020 presidential election was nowhere near close. Biden won the popular vote by seven million and the Electoral College vote 306 to Trump’s 232. The senator said:
‘This election actually was not unusually close. Just in recent history, 1976, 2000 and 2004 were all closer than this one.’
Recently, McConnell has left hints on both sides of the argument but kept his cards close regarding the impeachment trial. He wrote to his cohorts last week:
‘While the press has been full of speculation, I have not made a final decision on how I will vote and I intend to listen to the legal arguments when they are presented to the Senate.’
The Mueller Report Adventures: In Bite-Sizes on this Facebook page. These quick, two-minute reads interpret the report in normal English for busy people. Mueller Bite-Sizes uncovers what is essentially a compelling spy mystery. Interestingly enough, Mueller Bite-Sizes can be read in any order.
