On Wednesday afternoon the House impeached President Donald Trump for a second time.
‘Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell believes that impeachment is actually a good thing for his party because it opens the possibility that the GOP can make a very public break from the outgoing President.’ according to a source with knowledge of the matter.
Another person with direct knowledge told CNN there’s a reason McConnell has been silent on impeachment as other Republicans have pushed back: he’s furious about last week’s attack on the US Capitol by the President’s supporters, even more so that Trump has shown no contrition. His silence has been deliberate as he leaves open the option of supporting impeachment.
McConnell has made no commitments on voting to convict Trump and wants to see the article itself before voting.
More from CNN:
McConnell hinted at his openness in a note to his Republican colleagues Tuesday afternoon, saying, “While the press has been full of speculation, I have not made a final decision on how I will vote and I intend to listen to the legal arguments when they are presented to the Senate.”
It’s a stark contrast to the President’s first impeachment when McConnell repeatedly spoke out against Democratic intentions to hold Trump accountable for a pressure campaign on the Ukrainian government to investigate Joe Biden and his family.