West Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin says removing the Sens. Josh Hawley, R-Mo. And Ted Cruz, R-Texas, because of his objections to the 2020 presidential election results should be “a consideration”.
In an interview on Friday on PBS’s “Firing Line”, Manchin said that the senators’ insistence on opposing Pennsylvania Electoral College votes, even after supporters of President Trump invaded the United States Capitol, was “totally unscrupulous “and triggering the 14th Amendment is now an option.
HAWLEY DEFENDS OBJECTION TO THE RESULTS OF THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE: ‘I’M NOT GOING TO LAUGH TO A MOB WITHOUT LAW’
The third section of the amendment states that no legislator in office “should engage in insurrection or rebellion against him, or give help or comfort to his enemies.”
Congress can “by a two-thirds vote of each House, remove that deficiency,” says the section.
Added to the Constitution after the Civil War, the amendment was designed to cover cases of sedition, Manchin told hostess Margaret Hoover.
“That these people should never be in public office, should never have the public microphone, should never be allowed to be in a position of power or decision-making, or purpose, because they are going to serve themselves,” he said.
“Would you support, Senator, the removal of Senator Hawley and Senator Cruz through the 14th Amendment, Section 3?” Hoover asked.
“Well, they should look, for sure,” he said, referring to the Senate. “I mean, basically, that should be taken into account.”
Cruz “understands that,” added Manchin. “Ted is a very brilliant individual, and I get along very well with Ted. But what he did was totally outside the realm of our responsibilities or privileges that we have.”
None of the senators responded immediately to Fox News’s requests for comment.
The January 6 siege of the Capitol left five dead, including 42-year-old Capitol police officer Brian D. Sicknick.
Senator Ted Cruz, R-Texas, at the front, followed by Senator Josh Hawley, R-Mo., Leaves the Chamber of Deputies during a joint session to confirm the votes of the Electoral College on Wednesday, January 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo / Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Washington, DC, U.S. Attorney Michael Sherwin told reporters on Friday that the investigator would have more than 300 criminal cases open by the end of the day.
Democrats accused Hawley and Cruz of inciting Trump supporters for political gains, a charge that senators vehemently denied.
In an interview with Politico last week, Cruz said he was debating principle, law and the Constitution, which he said was “the exact opposite of inciting violence”.
CRUZ WILL PARTICIPATE IN THE INAUGURATION OF BIDEN
Manchin, however, said that “there was no way” that Republican senators would not be considered complicit in the day’s events.
“That they think they can go away and say, ‘Did I just exercise my right as a senator?’ Especially after we got back here and they saw what happened, “he said.
“I want to see all those people who objected and maintained their objection … you were sending requests for fundraising while this was happening – the insurrection to our Capitol – telling me that,” he told PBS.
After violent protesters loyal to President Donald Trump invaded the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, January 6, Senator Josh Hawley, R-Mo., Walks up to the House to contest the results of the presidential election in Pennsylvania. (AP Photo / J. Scott Applewhite)
Cruz and Hawley were also criticized for sending fundraising messages to their constituents, while protesters were pushing through the Capitol doors.
Reply to a tweet from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, DN.Y., on January 7, Cruz said he told his team to stop fundraising “within minutes” of the attack and denied that the debate over the formation of a commission for review election results “in some way supports terrorist violence.”
Hawley – while not mentioning his fundraising efforts – wrote a Wednesday article in The Missouri Times criticizing “much of the media” and “many members of the Washington establishment” who “want to deceive Americans into thinking that those who raised issues incited violence, simply by expressing concern. “
“Some wondered why I maintained my objection after the Capitol violence,” added Hawley. “The reason is simple: I will not bow to a lawless crowd or allow criminals to stifle my voters’ legitimate concerns.”
Hawley said constituents contacted him about concerns about electoral integrity after Trump’s defeat in states he does not represent.
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Manchin said he talked to Hawley and realized that the issue is “weighing on him”.
Both senators are facing resignations for continuing their objections to an election in which allegations of widespread electoral fraud have been unmasked and removed from court.