The Article below was published in Vol. 136, Issue 5 of the Lake Forest College Stentor on February 19, 2021.
By Nathaniel Bodnar ’21
Staff Writer
Democratically elected senators will likely never be capable of impeaching a president. Before the 17th Amendment’s passage in 1913, the Constitution did not have senators elected by the people; instead, the state legislatures decided. The Senate, which did not report directly to the people, was constitutionally assigned to convict in impeachment proceedings. Now that the Senate is directly accountable to the people, impeachment will never function as intended.
In the recent impeachment proceedings, many have referred to the voting senators as “jurors.” While some may debate how accurate this label is, if we view the senators as jurors, it becomes clear why popularly elected senators cannot actively take on that role. Jurors typically do not have their jobs threatened based on their decision, but in the current impeachment system, that is absolutely the case. Especially because the votes are public.
Republican House members who voted to impeach Trump will face serious consequences. Rep. Elizabeth Cheney (R-WY) kept her leadership position within the House after a secret ballot, which allowed representatives to vote their conscience and not be subject to their constituents’ wrath. Still, she will be subject to a massive primary challenge in 2022, she already has multiple challengers, and Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) has already visited Wyoming to rally against Cheney. Gaetz has also taken on Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), founder of the anti-Trump group called “Country First,” and told him to “f***ing bring it” in a Twitter debate. Every other Republican representative that voted to impeach has a similar fate. Of the 10, only Rep. John Katko (R-NY) does not have an announced primary candidate, and they are only a month into their terms.
Going into the impeachment trial, senators knew they would face similar consequences. It is not terribly surprising that most of the seven that bucked that party and the wishes of the people that voted them into office do not have reelection as an immediate goal. Senators Pat Toomey (R-PA) and Richard Burr (R-NC) are not planning on running again. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), and Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE) do not have to face the forces of democracy for six years, and Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) has four years until his next election. Only Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) has an election on the horizon.
In the end, Donald Trump was not convicted because representative democracy worked as advertised. The vast majority of senators chose to take the course of action most likely to get them re-elected, and only one of the senators that bucked that path has an election on their mind. With the passage of the 17th Amendment, the people must also be considered in impeachment proceedings, the senators will eventually be held accountable by them. Polling results showed that between 50 and 58 percent support for convicting Trump, and the Senate fell within that range with 57 voting to convict. To end, I think it must be asked: if Trump was saved by democracy and if senators would not face reelection challenges, could Trump have made it through the second impeachment unscathed?
