The overwhelming lesson of the Trump era: Republicans rebuke Trump when it's convenient

[DonViejo]

Aaron Blake 2 hrs ago

The Senate played host to a historic vote on Saturday, with seven members of former president Donald Trump’s party voting to convict him in his second impeachment trial. One thing that won’t surprise anyone who has paid attention to Trump’s tenure: A disproportionate number of the votes came from retiring Republicans.

Two of the seven who voted to convict Trump — Sens. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Patrick J. Toomey (R-Pa.) — had already said they won’t seek reelection. That means two of the four Republicans who have said they will retire voted against Trump. Another of the four, Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), issued one of the strongest denunciations of Trump among those who cited the alleged unconstitutionality of the proceedings in voting to acquit. He said Trump’s conduct vis-a-vis the Jan. 6 Capitol riot “was inexcusable, because in his speech he encouraged the mob, and that he bears some responsibility for the tragic violence that occurred.”

Those are three of the toughest verdicts on Trump’s conduct — all from swing states, and all from retiring Republicans.

This has been a fixture of Trump’s presidency. The party has, by and large, stuck by him through thick and thin. But just as telling is that, when lawmakers perceived some political latitude because of their lack of a political future, they have been much more willing to distance themselves from their party’s president.

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