U.S. Senate should expel Cruz
The shocking attempted coup fomented by President Donald Trump and his MAGA supporters is outrageous, un-american and terrifying — but it is not surprising.
Trump has spent the two months since the November election riling up his base with outrageous accusations of voter fraud and electoral malfeasance, all completely without any basis.
As Senate Majority Leader Mitch Mcconnell noted in his speech before the Senate was stormed by Trump supporters, courts all across the country — many with judges who are Trump appointees — have completely rejected any claim of voter fraud.
Unfortunately, it is not just Trump who bears responsibility for the failed coup but also many U.S. members of Congress, including U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, who objected to certification of the electoral votes from Arizona and Pennsylvania.
On the Senate floor, Cruz failed to offer any evidence of voter fraud but only brought up specious claims that millions of people believe the election was flawed. What he failed to mention is that they believe that only after weeks of deceit from Trump and people like himself.
Cruz invoked history in his speech, arguing that he desired Congress to establish a commission to study the outcome of the election as was done in 1876. However, as Mcconnell noted there is no evidence of voter fraud that would tip the election to Trump. Cruz’s attempt to subvert the certification of electoral votes is so extreme he could not get the support of the majority of Republican senators.
Cruz has built his political career using the activist wing of the Republican Party to attack the establishment wing. He used this strategy to win his Senate seat in 2012. He did it again during the 2013 government shutdown. He attempted to do so in 2016, only to be outflanked by Donald Trump. And he has done the same thing now. This time, however, Cruz’s proclivity for playing with fire has turned into an inferno, subverting the peaceful transition of power for the first time in American history.
Cruz also bears responsibility for what happened in the capital Wednesday, and therefore he is no longer fit to serve in the U.S. Senate.
If Cruz does not resign, the Senate should expel him. According to Article 1, Section 5, Clause 2 of the Constitution, each house of Congress may determine how to punish members of their chamber and two-thirds of the members of the chamber can expel a member. Cruz tried to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power to the Biden administration and should no longer be able to serve in the Senate.