An impeachment trial of President Donald Trump could keep 2020 presidential candidates who are also senators off the campaign trail for weeks.
New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet, California Sen. Kamala Harris, Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren would be required to stay in Washington, D.C., during an impeachment trial, according to BuzzFeed News.
Senate rules require senators to be present in session Monday through Saturday beginning at noon every day for an impeachment trial, BuzzFeed reported. The publication points out that Bill Clinton’s impeachment trial took several weeks.
Bennet is unsure whether he could continue campaigning if an impeachment trial takes place, he told BuzzFeed.
“We’ll have to see. But we’ve got an obligation here and we’ve got to make sure we do it properly,” said Bennet.
“It would be disruptive, that’s all I can tell you,” Republican Utah Sen. Mitt Romney told BuzzFeed.
Presidential candidates would be required to watch the proceedings without speaking, the publication reports, though they could talk about the proceedings in TV appearances.
Though the Senate could change the proceedings and lighten the amount of time senators are required to be present, this would require unanimous consent from both Republicans and Democrats. Republicans could also use a “nuclear option” to change the rules.
Former campaign manager for Florida Sen. Marco Rubio’s presidential run Terry Sullivan dismissed this possibility.
“Do you think [Senate Majority Leader] Mitch McConnell gives two shits about how much this is going to take Kamala Harris off the campaign trail,” Sullivan said to BuzzFeed. He added that the impeachment trial would be “a huge, huge burden” to senators on the campaign trail.
Booker, Bennet, Harris, Klobuchar, Sanders and Warren did not respond to requests for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.
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