Sen. Tim Kaine, speaking earlier today on PBS:
“I think the behavior [of Trump] is impeachable and certainly warrants conviction, but I think the chances are virtually zero. So look, what we have to grapple with is the reality that we will have a trial and that we will fall far short of the 2/3 requirement to convict in an impeachment. And that’s why I have been working for the last couple weeks with colleagues on both sides of the aisle to look at alternatives where we could hold President Trump accountable for fomenting violence at the Capitol on 1/6, but that would be short of the impeachment full trial with the 2/3 vote requirement…
Susan Collins and I…are exploring a very simple resolution, it would declare the attack on the Capitol on 1/6 an insurrection against the Constitution of the United States…It would find that President Trump gave aid and comfort to the insurrectionists…and it would then condemn [Trump] for those actions…I believe if we were to pass this resolution, it would take a 60-vote threshold…not 67 votes, not 2/3rds…and then down the road people would look at this condemnation resolution and if Donald Trump ever ran for office again, courts could determine whether the resolution would be a bar to him from running…I am exploring this as an alternative...there are accountability mechanisms for [Trump] other than an impeachment trial which is most likely to come up short.”
