I’m probably going to start highlighting examples of Senate Republicans showing their exasperation with the president because it will not be too long before they become the key jurors who will determine whether Donald Trump should be removed from office. Today, we have a lot of choice examples. I could show you some of the comments related to the president’s decision to pull our troops out of Syria, but I will instead focus on the reaction to Trump’s decision not to sign a continuing resolution to avoid a holiday season government shutdown.
Susan Collins of Maine is probably the Republican senator most disposed to indict Trump for impeachable offenses, and she doesn’t sound pleased:
“Are you ruining my life?” GOP Sen. Susan Collins (Maine) joked to The Hill when told about the decision.
“No. I don’t think the votes are [there], ugh. We can’t have a government shutdown, period,” she said, when asked if there was an alternative to the Senate bill. “It’s never good. How many times do we have to learn that?”
Ron Johnson of Wisconsin has had a number of run-ins with the administration, and he’s at his wit’s end.
Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), asked if it looked like Congress was headed toward a partial lapse in funding, told reporters “it kind of seems we’re on the path.”
“I’m not sure what leverage the president thinks he has at this moment. I think the way you create leverage is keep this issue alive” into next year, Johnson told reporters.
Bob Corker of Tennessee is retiring but that’s helpful because he feels free to say what other Republicans senators are thinking but are afraid to say:
Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), who is retiring in early January, started laughing when he was told of Trump’s decision.
“Well, why not?” he quipped, asked why he was laughing, adding that he was “not really” surprised by Trump’s decision.
“On this? I don’t know. Y’all have fun. I’m getting ready to fly to Chattanooga. …[Leadership] has no guidance right now,” Corker said, asked what happened next. “I think they’re just sort of swirling around over there at the White House.”
Asked if he thought the continuing resolution (CR) could still be signed, Corker added that it’s impossible to predict what Trump will do.
“I don’t know. … Who knows. Does the person sitting behind him at the White House know? Who would know? Who would know,” Corker said. “I love it, you can’t make this stuff up.”
A government shutdown is extremely aggravating for both House and Senate Republicans but the decision on Syria actually presents a much more serious threat for Trump. That’s the kind of erratic behavior that will convince members that he should be removed from office before he breaks things that cannot be fixed.
As Nancy noted, Trump seems to care only about how his base is feeling and not have any concern about the health of the GOP. It’s not going unnoticed.
Trump is rapidly spoiling his own jury pool.