'McConnell could have ended this': Morning Joe panel piles on Senate GOP for saving Trump
A panel on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" on Wednesday hammered Senate Republicans for failing to drive a stake into the heart of former President Donald Trump's political career when they had the chance.
The discussion was sparked by Jeffrey Goldberg, an editor at The Atlantic, talking about his recent interview with former Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) in which he deflected criticism of his decision to acquit Trump at his second impeachment trial that came shortly after the former president incited a deadly riot at the United States Capitol building.
In speculating about Portman and other Republicans' motives for acquitting Trump, Goldberg said that it boiled down to a fear of being voted out of office in GOP primaries by Trump fanatics.
"They wanted to keep their jobs," said Goldberg. "They saw what happened to people who stepped out of line. They saw, you know, even their own colleague Romney being scapegoated within the Capitol simply for standing up for his principles. They found excuses not to vote for it."
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Goldberg also said that many Republicans rationalized voting against Trump because they couldn't conceive that their voters would nominate him again in 2024 given the enormous baggage that he carries.
He then pointed the finger at Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) for not rallying his caucus behind a Trump conviction, as he would have needed to convince just ten additional Republican senators to vote to permanently end Trump's political ambitions.
"Mitch McConnell could have ended this," he said. "He's the guy. But you know what, people like Rob Portman, a highly respected senator, very smart guy, very accomplished guy, if he had built up Mitch McConnell's backbone, we wouldn't be here. But Mitch McConnell was the key player."
In the end, 57 senators voted to convict Trump on charges of inciting an insurrection while 43 voted to acquit.
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