Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer insisted Tuesday he and Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have the authority to reconvene the Senate in time to convene an impeachment trial before the end of President Trump’s term.
“Leader McConnell is saying he can’t call the Senate back after the House votes for impeachment because it requires unanimous consent, the consent of every senator, that’s not true,” Schumer (D-NY) claimed during an afternoon press conference across the street from his Manhattan office.
“There was legislation passed in 2004 that allows the Senate minority leader and majority leader to jointly reconvene the Senate in times of emergency. This is a time of emergency.”
Last week, McConnell (R-Ky.) issued a memo to Senate colleagues saying any House resolution on the impeachment couldn’t be transmitted to the upper chamber until Jan. 19 based on the body’s current calendar — rendering any House vote to impeach a moot point.
Even if the House did present its case to the Senate on the 19th, existing rules state debates and votes can’t begin until 1 p.m. the next day — making the earliest possible moment for a vote an hour after President-elect Joe Biden is sworn into office at noon on the 20th.
But Schumer claimed the obscure 2004 law gives him and McConnell the authority to reconvene the Senate as long as the two pols agree.
“The legislation passed in 2004 puts a dagger through the heart of this idea that you need unanimous consent,” the Brooklyn native insisted.
“I’ve asked him to call the Senate back, all he needs is my agreement … and his agreement and we can come back ASAP and vote to convict Donald Trump and get him out of office now before any further damage is done.”
If McConnell did agree to reconvening the Senate, the chamber’s rules still empower lone senators to throw up roadblocks to speedy consideration.
A request for comment from McConnell’s office wasn’t immediately returned.
Additional reporting by Steven Nelson