Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) had a tough day on the Sunday morning news shows, where he was ridiculed for an absurd claim that the Constitution mandates President Donald Trump face the whistleblower.
A late MSNBC panel discussion called it an example of Paul's "hot mess" of policy positions, which seem to change with the senator's whim. While Paul may think that the Sixth Amendment gives people the right to face their accuser, it's only for criminal trials, according to the Constitution, that Paul swore an oath to uphold.
"This is not a criminal trial. This is impeachment. It happens under the Constitution, and the Constitution doesn’t prescribe rules or norms for it," said New York law professor Melissa Murray. "All of this gets worked out by the Senate. So it is not the same as a criminal trial, and we’re not seeking to prove beyond a reasonable doubt an actual criminal act. It is sort of broader. High crimes misdemeanors are the abuse of office."
She noted that it's odd to hear Paul demanding the whistleblower come forward when he's been so strident on the protection of whistleblowers in the past.
"His positions are known as what is known as a Due Process hot mess," said host Ari Melber.
"It’s a technical legal term, but, yes, that’s what the scholars are calling it," Murray continued. "But you need to come back; it’s going to be really important when people watch on their television, see these career professionals. These are not partisans; these are not Obama people; these are not Democrats; these are foreign service professionals who have given their professional lives in service to this country, saying, 'I saw things that were so unorthodox that it gave me pause.' Bill Taylor says he almost didn’t accept the posting in Ukraine because he thought the way the foreign policy was being run was so unorthodox and such a mess. He didn’t want to participate. Then he’s saying what I saw just looked to me like the highest levels of corruption at worst, and complete incompetence at best."
Watch the full panel below: