Republican Senators Say Trump Should Be Made To Pay But Not By Them

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US Senate Minority Whip John Thune, has said former President Donald Trump’s actions ahead of the deadly Capitol riot are totally indefensible.

The Republican lawmaker when asked if he can defend what Trump did, said: “No – not at all. “The way he handled the post-election, both in terms of his public statements and things that he tried to do to change the outcome, no.”

According to CNN, like other Republicans, Thune has no clear answer to this key question: What should they do to Trump after he lied to his supporters about the election being stolen, promoted the January 6 rally in DC and urged demonstrators to go to the Capitol, which they later rampaged in a deadly riot?

“Well, that’s a good question,” said Thune, who faces reelection in South Dakota next year. “One way, obviously, would be in a court of law.”

With the impeachment trial for Trump set to begin February 9, Senate Republicans are criticizing him without doing anything about his actions, hoping to put distance between themselves and the former President without casting any votes that could cause a backlash from Trump and his fervent supporters. Many say something should be done about what Trump did – but just not by them.

Read also: 140 US House Republicans To Vote Against Counting Electoral Votes

When asked about Trump’s actions in relation to the January 6 riot on Capitol Hill, Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, a member of GOP leadership, said: “I’m not going to defend them.”

“I think he’s been held accountable in the court of public opinion already,” Cornyn said when asked if the Senate should take any actions, arguing it would set a “dangerous precedent” to convict a former President.

The rhetoric showcases the split between House and Senate Republicans as the party struggles to find its voice after the tumultuous Trump era. Many House Republicans remain staunch Trump defenders, saying he did nothing wrong and shouldn’t be blamed for the violence that occurred at the Capitol.

“President Trump did not cause the attack on the Capitol on January 6,” freshman Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, the controversial Georgia Republican, told her supporters this week.

A majority of House Republicans backed the efforts to throw out President Joe Biden’s electoral victories in two key states, while just a handful did in the Senate.

After House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy of California walked back his criticism of Trump and made a jaunt to South Florida on Thursday to meet with the former President, he went out of his way to proclaim they were united in their fight to take back the House next year.

Back in Washington, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, made clear he hasn’t spoken to Trump since December 15, and it’s unclear if he ever will again.