What if two or more republican senators (Hawley and Johnson come to mind) are arrested for insurrection? Are they removed from Congress while pending trial? Does Congress continue on given the vacancies? Would this create an opening for majority vote? Just thinking outside the box.
What if two or more republican senators (Hawley and Johnson come to mind) are arrested for insurrection? Are they removed from Congress while pending trial? Does Congress continue on given the vacancies? Would this create an opening for majority vote? Just thinking outside the box.
Indictments and arrests are separate from decisions about the status of individual Congresspeople. They must be made by the House or Senate.
The classic case is the House expelling Preston Brooks in 1856 for beating Charles Sumner half to death. Brooks was promptly reelected by his constituents. (He died within a year, ensuring his status as a nasty footnote in American history.) NB, his home district of Edgefield SC was the most violent county in the entire country.
D Donald, Charles Sumner & the Coming of the Civil War
J Freeman, The Field of Blood
S Puleo, The Caning
PS, I often leave a modest offering at the Sumner statue in Harvard Square when passing by. It's literally putting in my two cents worth.
Thank you too, Eileen. The ST is actually named after someone else who's less important, a MA governor's son. But I revere Sen Sumner, and thus also associate the tunnel with him.
Great questions! I'm sure there are a few poli-sci and history profs reading these comments who are able to give better answers than I can. Google is often useful for the quick and general....
I did a little google search to find out that the state governor replaces a senator until a special election is called. Although there may be differences in each state. The governor of Missouri is a republican. The governor of Wisconsin is a democrat. Wonder if a governor is required to replace with like party?
What if two or more republican senators (Hawley and Johnson come to mind) are arrested for insurrection? Are they removed from Congress while pending trial? Does Congress continue on given the vacancies? Would this create an opening for majority vote? Just thinking outside the box.
Indictments and arrests are separate from decisions about the status of individual Congresspeople. They must be made by the House or Senate.
The classic case is the House expelling Preston Brooks in 1856 for beating Charles Sumner half to death. Brooks was promptly reelected by his constituents. (He died within a year, ensuring his status as a nasty footnote in American history.) NB, his home district of Edgefield SC was the most violent county in the entire country.
D Donald, Charles Sumner & the Coming of the Civil War
J Freeman, The Field of Blood
S Puleo, The Caning
PS, I often leave a modest offering at the Sumner statue in Harvard Square when passing by. It's literally putting in my two cents worth.
Thank you for the history and book titles! I used to go through the Charles Sumner tunnel as a young girl. Never appreciated the history.
Thank you too, Eileen. The ST is actually named after someone else who's less important, a MA governor's son. But I revere Sen Sumner, and thus also associate the tunnel with him.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumner_Tunnel.
Yes, please, Dear God in Heaven, Mother Nature and Buddha hear us!
Great questions! I'm sure there are a few poli-sci and history profs reading these comments who are able to give better answers than I can. Google is often useful for the quick and general....
I did a little google search to find out that the state governor replaces a senator until a special election is called. Although there may be differences in each state. The governor of Missouri is a republican. The governor of Wisconsin is a democrat. Wonder if a governor is required to replace with like party?
Well, I hope all these insurrectionist politicians are arrested and run through the wringer. This will not be pretty.
This website lists this how each state handles a senate vacancy.
https://www.ncsl.org/research/elections-and-campaigns/vacancies-in-the-united-states-senate637302453.aspx#Foot1
Of special note: McConnell just helped Kentucky change the way a senate vacancy is handled: KentuckyтАЩs SB 228 requires the governor to appoint someone who shares the same political party as the departing senator and makes them select that person from a list of three names provided by the executive committee of that senator's state party. https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/politics/ky-general-assembly/2021/03/30/mitch-mcconnell-recommended-changes-kentuckys-senate-vacancy-rules/7056325002/
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