The United States Senate this week voted largely along party lines to acquit President Donald Trump of abusing the power of his office and obstruction of congress.
Two articles of impeachment were introduced by the House of Representatives with the result not coming quite as the White House had anticipated.
Utah Sen. Mitt Romney broke with his Republican colleagues on the first article and voted in favor of Trump’s guilt. The final results were 52 to 48 on article one (abuse of power), and the expected 53 to 47 on article two (obstruction of congress).
Political watchers anticipate that the Senate verdict on Wednesday will allow the president to declare victory, yet his success among GOP senators does not diminish the fact that he must run for reelection under the stigma of impeachment. Almost immediately after the vote was tabulated, political pundits on both sides chimed in about the underlying consequences.
Although Romney was alone among Republicans in voting to remove Trump from office, he was supported by a number of GOP colleagues who rejected Trump’s earlier statements that his actions were “perfect” in soliciting assistance in July 2019 from Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate possible presidential rival Joe Biden.
The House impeached Trump in December for withholding nearly $400 million in U.S. aid to Ukraine while pressing for investigations into his political rivals, particularly Biden. Romney and some of his fellow Republicans felt these actions were “egregiously wrong.”
Romney’s decision allows Democrats to claim a level of bipartisan support—albeit it thin—for working to convict Trump and, in effect, prevents the president from claiming his party was united in rejecting impeachment.
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank), the lead House impeachment manager who presented the case to the Senate, said that Democrats will “remain vigilant” in their oversight of the president.
“There is a risk that he becomes even more unbounded,” Schiff said Wednesday afternoon. “We succeeded in exposing his misconduct and stopping the plot. His plotting continues and we’re going to have to be vigilant.”
