House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi, has refused ruling out a second impeachment of US President Donald Trump if he and the Republican party try to install a replacement for the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Ginsburg before November’s presidential elections.
The move would be an unprecedented one for Ms Pelosi and Democrats, as Republicans try to install a 6-3 conservative majority on the highest court in the land while Democrats scramble to try delaying a vote until after Election Day or next year.
If Republicans have a 6-3 majority in the Supreme court, it will go a long way in deciding cases on Obamacare, Mexico border wall funding, Dreamers act, Immigration, and even post election court cases.
“We have our options. We have arrows in our quiver that I’m not about to discuss,” the California Democrat said on ABC’s “This Week” program when asked about impeaching the president or Attorney General William Barr.
“But the fact is, we have a big challenge in our country,” Ms Pelosi said.
“This president has threatened to not even accept the results of the election with statements that he and his henchmen have made. So right now, our main goal … would be to protect the integrity of the election as we protect the American people from the coronavirus.”
When ABC anchor George Stephanopoulos asked if she is ruling out any step the House could take to interrupt the Senate’s agenda, the speaker left all options on the table.
“We have a responsibility, we take an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States,” she said. “We have a responsibility to meet the needs of the American people. When we weigh the equities of protecting our democracy, [it] requires us to use every arrow in our quiver,.”
Under the Constitution, the Senate would be required to hold a trial if the House votes to impeach a president or Cabinet official.
Because a trial would tie up the chamber’s agenda for weeks or longer, it would not have time to take up something as complicated as a Supreme Court nomination at the same time.
“Voters should pick the president,” Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said in reaction .
“and the president should pick the nominee.”
