“The evidence is convincing that President Trump is guilty of inciting an insurrection against a co-equal branch of the government and that the accusation reaches the level of crimes and misdemeanors,” said Burr on Saturday. “So I voted to condemn.”
The Senate acquitted Trump on Saturday of inciting insurrection after the January 6 riot on Capitol Hill in a 57-43 vote, 10 votes below the required threshold for sentencing. All 50 Democratic senators supported the sentencing.
But on Sunday, Senator Lindsey Graham (RS.C.) said the “biggest winner” of Trump’s impeachment trial was the daughter-in-law of former President Lara Trump.
“My dear friend Richard Burr, whom I like and have been friends with for a long time, just made Lara Trump the almost certain nominee for the North Carolina Senate seat to replace him if she runs,” Graham told Fox News. . “And I will certainly be with her because she represents the future of the Republican Party.”
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) he also faced reaction for his vote on Saturday, with his state’s Republican Party voting the same day to censor the senator for his decision. Cassidy continued to defend his vote on Monday, writing in a Baton Rouge newspaper that “voted to convict former President Trump because he is guilty. That’s what the facts demand.”
“I have no illusions that this is a popular decision. I made that decision because Americans shouldn’t be fed lies about ‘massive electoral fraud’. The police should not be left at the mercy of a mob. Mobs must not be ignited to interrupt the peaceful transfer of power, “wrote the Louisiana senator.
Cassidy and Burr are just two Republicans being reprimanded by their state parties for their votes in Trump’s second impeachment trial. Earlier this month, Senator Ben Sasse faced a censorship effort from the Nebraska Republican Party, while several House Republicans faced reprisals for their votes – including Wyoming’s third Republican MP Liz Cheney.