President Trump is planning political punishment for the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach him over last week’s Capitol uprising, according to a new report.
Trump convened aides to inform him of the 10 following Wednesday afternoon’s vote, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.
Trump “wanted to know who the lawmakers were and if he had ever done anything for them,” and “asked who could walk against them if they got reelected in two years,” the Journal reported.
The breakaway Republicans joined all Democrats to impeach Trump based on a single count of allegedly instigating an uprising that disrupted President-elect Joe Biden’s certification of victory.
No. 3 House Republican, Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, was one of the 10 and opposes calls from some members of the House Freedom Caucus to resign. She and Trump had long clashed with foreign policy, and he called for her impeachment during a pre-riot speech near the White House, which set the groundwork for his impeachment.
The other Republicans who voted to impeach Trump were representatives. Tom Rice from South Carolina, John Katko from New York, Anthony Gonzalez from Ohio, Peter Meijer from Michigan, Adam Kinzinger from Illinois, Dan Newhouse from Washington, Fred Upton from Michigan, Jaime Herrera Beutler from Washington and David Valadao from California.
Trump is expected to remain a powerful figure among Republicans when he leaves office on January 20 and could help overthrow the handful of incumbents. Many other Republicans, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, publicly criticized Trump’s actions but called for less harsh censure.
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) pushed for a motion of censure that would ban Trump from re-serving, but she was not in favor of impeachment. Others bickered about the wording. Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) said Trump “deserves universal condemnation for what I believe was clearly unacceptable behavior,” but disagreed with the Democrats’ wording.
Much about Trump’s impeachment trial by the Senate is uncertain, including whether it will begin this month. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) Declined at a press conference Friday to say whether she will immediately forward the impeachment resolution to the Senate, or possibly wait months to avoid being distracted from Biden’s early legislative agenda.
Trump has yet to select lawyers to represent him in the Senate trial. It’s also unclear if Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts will chair the trial, as Trump will be the first ex-president to face an impeachment lawsuit. There is also a legal theory that he cannot stand trial because he is no longer in office and the purpose of impeachment is removal.
Senate leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Who will hand over his title to New York Democratic leader Chuck Schumer later this month, said on Wednesday that he has not decided how to vote on impeachment. But with 17 Republican votes needed to condemn, and Trump’s political retaliation lurking, it will remain difficult to achieve.