TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Kansas Republican Sen. Jerry Moran said Friday that he hasnt decided how he would vote on removing President Donald Trump from office but followed those comments up by criticizing the Democratic-led Houses impeachment process.
Morans statement declared that he does not support the two articles of impeachment approved by the House Judiciary Committee. The articles accuse Trump of abusing his power as president and obstructing the congressional investigation of his conduct.
He posted the statement on his Facebook page several hours after he was asked at an event in Topeka whether he had decided how he would vote on removing Trump from office. He jokingly called it a stupid question.
No, he told The Associated Press. I guess you could take my answer as, like, Does he already know? No.
In his statement, Moran called the Houses impeachment process purely partisan, and said the entire process has been flawed. And, in line with another common GOP argument, he said Democrats have been trying to overturn Trumps victory in the 2016 election.
Those remarks echo the criticism of Kansas GOP Reps. Ron Estes, Roger Marshall and Steve Watkins. Rep. Sharice Davids, the only Democrat in the states congressional delegation, plans to vote for both impeachment articles.
Morans statement said because he will act as a juror in the Senate trial, it is inappropriate for him to say how he would vote on removing the president.
But, his statement concluded, Ive seen no evidence that President Trump should be removed from office.
The House Judiciary Committee approved two impeachment articles over Trumps effort to get Ukraine to investigate Democratic political rival and former Vice President Joe Biden and Bidens son, Hunter.
Moran said he hopes for a short Senate trial of a couple of weeks. He said he worries that a longer trial would prevent the Senate from doing other important business.
But he also said he does not want the Senate to dismiss the case against Trump almost immediately.
It should be thoughtfully considered but you also dont want this just continue to be THE topic in Washington, D.C., for weeks on end, he said.
