He is a moral man. He answers to a higher power than Kelly Loeffler. He did not cross to the left when the first request for witnesses came forward. He did not abandon his party or the facts. The facts as they were presented leaves him thinking the Senate needs to hear from others that love the country as well. He did not follow the US House hearings or votes. He has stated he had work that demands his attention, so he went into the US Senate hearing without ideas or prejudice.
He has stated openly before there was a Senate hearing that he wants to know what John Bolton the former ambassador has to say. He is correct. Former Ambassador Bolton needs to speak to the US Senate. He isn't necessarily my choice as he is a staunch Republican and has always believed in the US military as an answer to many problems that beset the world. But, he was insulted enough by Donald John Trump to resign from his position. He chased people from his office when the conversation leaned into untenable and outside the reach of USA policy. He also sees Rudy Giuliani as a worry.
Putting everything into context, US Senator Romney is correct. The American people need to understand the actions of a man as president that simply doesn't make sense. There are more facts that have surfaced about the Executive Branch with Trump in the Oval Office and it is very troubling. I sincerely hope the US Senate takes this issue seriously and lives up to their oath of office as well as the oath of impeachment.
January 27, 2020
By Clare Foran
Republican Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler (click here) targeted her colleague GOP Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah on Monday over the issue of witnesses at the Senate impeachment trial.
In a tweet, Loeffler leveled an accusation at Romney, saying, "After 2 weeks, it's clear that Democrats have no case for impeachment. Sadly, my colleague @SenatorRomney wants to appease the left by calling witnesses who will slander the @realDonaldTrump during their 15 minutes of fame. The circus is over. It's time to move on!"
Loeffler, a political novice and businesswoman, was sworn in as Georgia's newest senator earlier this month, taking over the seat previously held by then-Sen. Johnny Isakson, a Republican who retired at the end of last year over health concerns.
Her comments about Romney come as a debate over whether there should be witnesses called during the trial has intensified in the wake of a New York Times report that former national security adviser John Bolton's draft manuscript says President Donald Trump told him US security assistance to Ukraine was conditioned on investigations into Democrats, including former Vice President Joe Biden....
The US Constitution needs a champion right about now. Protecting the US Constitution is reliant upon the judgement and decisions of the Democrats. Put it on the line and ask for subpoenas for witnesses. It is about the country, not politics.
January 27, 2020
By Neal K. Katyal, Joshua A. Geltzer and Mickey Edwards
...Yet Republican members of the Senate (click here) have signaled that they intend to uphold Mr. Trump’s unprecedented decision to block all of this material.
But it turns out they don’t get to make that choice — Chief Justice John Roberts does. This isn’t a matter of Democrats needing four “moderate” Republicans to vote for subpoenas and witnesses, as the Trump lawyers have been claiming. Rather, the impeachment rules, like all trial systems, put a large thumb on the scale of issuing subpoenas and place that power within the authority of the judge, in this case the chief justice.
Most critically, it would take a two-thirds vote — not a majority — of the Senate to overrule that. This week, Democrats can and should ask the chief justice to issue subpoenas on his authority so that key witnesses of relevance like John Bolton and Mick Mulvaney appear in the Senate, and the Senate should subpoena all relevant documents as well....
