Artemus
Veteran Member
Rule changes in the Senate require a two-thirds vote. PerFilibuster_in_the_United_States_Senate
McConnell actually mentioned that as the reason he had to hold the trial. (Not because it was the right thing to do, but because he didn't have enough votes to do the wrong thing.)
I'll defer to your opinion, but what about what it says here:
The nuclear option is a parliamentary procedure that allows the United States Senate to override the 60-vote rule to close debate, by a simple majority of 51 votes, rather than the two-thirds supermajority normally required to amend the rules. The option is invoked when the majority leader raises a point of order that only a simple majority is needed to close debate on certain matters. The presiding officer denies the point of order based on Senate rules, but the ruling of the chair is then appealed and overturned by majority vote, establishing new precedent.
This procedure effectively allows the Senate to decide any issue by simple majority vote, regardless of existing procedural rules such as Rule XXII which requires the consent of 60 senators (out of 100) to end a filibuster for legislation, and 67 for amending a Senate rule.
Maybe McConnell is saying that he is bound to hold the trial, but in reality once the trial starts they can change the rules as they wish.
Don't defer to my opinion! I just saw the quote from McConnell and quoted the Wikipedia article that seemed to confirm it. The "nuclear option" is clear as mud. Maybe McConnell actually does want to do the right thing but wants the republican voters to think that that he only did it because he had no choice.