While Many GOP Senators Have Been Moved by Impeachment Trial, Rick Scott Calls it a “Complete Waste of Time”

Last updated on February 12th, 2021 at 03:52 pm

Yesterday’s impeachment trial of Donald Trump opened with a stirring speech by Congressman Jamie Raskin. And the hearings have only become more emotional since.

While watching footage of the January 6th insurrection today, Republican Senator James Lankford became visibly upset. A number of GOP lawmakers have commented on how effective the Democratic case has been.

After watching today’s hearing, South Dakota’s John Thune said, “I think they were very effective. They had a strong, strong presentation put together in a way that I think makes it pretty compelling.”

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Yesterday, another Republican, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana changed his mind on the constitutionality of the case. He told reporters, “House managers were focused, they were organized,” and “made a compelling argument. President Trump’s team were disorganized. They did everything they could but to talk about the question at hand and when they talked about it, they kind of glided over, almost as if they were embarrassed of their arguments.”

Scott, though, did not feel the same way as his Republican colleagues. “Look,” he said. “I’ve been clear that that I wish the president had said something faster when they broke into it, but, you know, I’ve watched what he said. He’s never said when somebody should break in — [he] actually said that people should do this peacefully. This is a complete waste of time,” he continued. “It’s not doing anything to help American families, it’s not helping people get jobs, it’s not helping get the vaccine out … it’s vindictive.”

Lawyer Daniel Uhlfelder was quick to point out some of Scott’s history in court rooms. He tweeted, “Rick Scott invoked the 5th amendment against self-incrimination 75 times in his civil depositions.”



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