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Chief Justice John Roberts’ Move Not to Sit for Trump Impeachment Sparks Constitutional Concerns
Chief Justice John Roberts’ decision not to preside over former President Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial has raised concerns about whether the proceedings are constitutional.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) told MSNBC that Roberts “did not want” to partake in the impeachment trial.
“The Constitution says the chief justice presides for a sitting president,” he said. “So it was up to John Roberts whether he wanted to preside with a president who is no longer sitting, Trump, and he doesn’t want to do it.”
Schumer has argued that an impeachment trial of a president once he’s left office is constitutional and vowed to go through with it.
Instead of Roberts, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), the Senate president pro tempore, will preside over the trial.
The Supreme Court has not responded to a request for comment from The Epoch Times or other news outlets about the reason why Roberts won’t partake. Roberts has not offered a public comment about his decision.
But because Roberts isn’t presiding over the event, some have argued that it goes against the Constitution.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) was one of them, writing an opinion article earlier this week noting that “the Constitution says two things about impeachment—it is a tool to remove the officeholder, and it must be presided over by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.”
“Neither one of those things will happen. President Trump is gone, and Justice John Roberts, properly noticing the absence of an officeholder being impeached, is declining to preside,” he continued. “That settles it for me.”
The Kentucky Republican made reference to Roberts’ decision not to attend the trial on the floor of the Senate during his bid to vote down the impeachment trial.
“If the chief justice doesn’t preside, I think it’s an illegitimate hearing and really goes to show that it’s not really constitutional to impeach someone who’s not president,” he remarked.
Paul’s bid was voted down 55–45, with five Republican senators joining Democrats to go ahead with the trial. However, 17 Republicans are needed to convict Trump.
Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), a member of GOP leadership, said earlier in the week that the “Constitution requires that the chief justice preside over the impeachment trial of a president,” adding that it is “indicative of the fact that we’re in uncharted waters.”