Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) says President Donald Trump should be disqualified from ever running for office again due to what he sees as the president’s role in inciting the mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol.
“After what he has done, the consequences of which we were all witness to, Donald Trump should not be eligible to run for office ever again,” Schumer said during a speech on Tuesday.
He continued, “All of us want to put this awful chapter in our nation’s history behind us. But healing and unity will only come if there is truth and accountability, not sweeping such a severe charge, such awful actions under the rug.”
“So let me be clear, there will be an impeachment trial in the United States Senate. There will be a vote on convicting the president for high crimes and misdemeanors. And if the president is convicted, there will be a vote on barring him from running again,” he added.
Watch the video below:
Senate Minority Leader Schumer on impeachment:
— NBC News (@NBCNews) January 19, 2021
"Healing and unity will only come if there is truth and accountability … If the president is convicted, there will be a vote on barring him from running again." pic.twitter.com/sgE5KT2gd5
Schumer’s comments come almost two weeks after a mob of pro-Trump rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol, leaving at least five dead and interrupting proceedings to certify the Electoral College vote count.
The House has voted to impeach Trump, with 10 Republicans voting to advance the article of impeachment, on the charge of “incitement of insurrection.”
It now goes to the Senate, where 67 senators would need to vote “yes” to convict Trump. However, it is unclear whether any Republican senators are planning to vote to convict the president.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) blamed Trump for the riot as he said, “The mob was fed lies. They were provoked by the president and other powerful people. And they tried to use fear and violence to stop a specific proceeding of the first branch of the federal government, which they did not like.”
And while several press reports appear to suggest the Kentucky lawmaker is supportive of the impeachment push, he told his colleagues, “While the press has been full of speculation, I have not made a final decision on how I will vote. I intend to listen to the legal arguments when they are presented to the Senate.”