Sen. Alexander Says Donald Trump is Guilty But Puts the President Above Country

OPINION:

Tennessee Senator Lamar Alexander, a key impeachment swing vote, announced Thursday night that he will not join Democrats in voting to call witnesses in President Donald Trump’s Senate impeachment trial. He notified his close friend Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of his decision before announcing it himself at the conclusion of a second marathon day of questioning by senators.

“I worked with other senators to make sure that we have the right to ask for more documents and witnesses, but there is no need for more evidence to prove something that has already been proven and that does not meet the U.S. Constitution’s high bar for an impeachable offense,” he said on Twitter.

Alexander said in a lengthy statement that Trump’s conduct on his July 25 call with the Ukrainian president was “inappropriate” but he suggested that it was not an impeachable offense. He conceded that the president had engaged in a corrupt effort to leverage taxpayer money to advance his own political objectives — the basis of the abuse-of-power charge against the president.

The senator’s decision to not hear from first-hand witnesses, such as former national security adviser John Bolton and acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, differs fron Sen. Susan Collins of Maine. On Thursday Collins said, “I believe hearing from certain witnesses would give each side the opportunity to more fully and fairly make their case, resolve any ambiguities, and provide additional clarity. Therefore, I will vote in support of the motion to allow witnesses and documents to be subpoenaed.”

Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah will also vote for witnesses on Friday. Liz Johnson, a spokesman for Romney, tweeted on Friday that as Romney “has said, he wants to hear from Ambassador Bolton, and he will vote in favor of the motion today to consider witnesses.”

Senator Alexander is retiring from Congress at the end of the year.

In 2002, Alexander won election to the United States Senate succeeding retiring Senator Fred Thompson. He was Secretary of Education in the George H. W. Bush administration between 1991 and 1993. Alexander was the 45th Governor of Tennessee from 1979 to 1987.

Unfortunately, Sen. Alexander’s legacy will be irreparably damaged with his decision. There’s no doubt that in time far more evidence will surface of the President’s guilt. Just in the short time since the House voted to impeach Trump, there have been a series of revelations and statements that point to a President who violated U.S. laws and his oath of office and endangered our national security. This is a sad ending for Alexander who cultivated a reputation for being a traditional Republican senator who knew right from wrong. His decision will harm our Republican Party for years to come.

Tennessee Howard BakerWhile giving the eulogy of his longtime political hero former Tennessee Senator Howard Baker, Sen. Alexander mapped out the impact impeachments could have on one’s legacy. Of the Watergate hearings he said, “the most famous words were Howard Baker’s: “What did the president know and when did he know it?”Alexander recalled in 2014. “The exposure made Baker a national hero.” By assisting in a coverup, it’s clear now that Lamar Alexander is no Howard Baker.

As the Chattanooga Times Free Press wrote today, “Rather than do the right thing and vote to allow witnesses to tell what they heard and saw President Donald Trump do as he tried to extort free opposition research on a political opponent from a foreign government by withholding military aid, Alexander in a long statement late Thursday night acknowledged Trump’s wrongdoing, but gave him a pass.”

Howard Baker, if alive today, would be ashamed of Lamar Alexander.

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