Nebraska GOP Drafts Resolution to Censure Ben Sasse Before Impeachment-Trial Vote
Sasse responds: The Capitol riot ‘happened because the president lied to you.’
Senator Ben Sasse (R., NE) attends a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., June 16, 2020. (Tom Williams/Reuters)
By JOHN MCCORMACK
National Review
The state Republican party of Nebraska is preparing to vote on censuring U.S. Senator Ben Sasse before the conclusion of the Senate’s impeachment trial of former president Donald Trump.
The text of the Resolution of Censure, first reported by News Channel Nebraska, runs more than 1,200 words long, but every charge against Sasse basically boils down to the claim that the senator has been insufficiently loyal to Donald Trump, was wrong to oppose efforts to delegitimize and overturn the 2020 presidential election, and was wrong to blame Trump for the January 6 Capitol riot that left one police officer dead and sent 14 more to the hospital.
Although Sasse hasn’t said if he will vote to convict Trump, the censure resolution hits the Nebraska senator for his vote last week affirming that it is constitutional to hold an impeachment trial of a former official.
The resolution takes issue with Sasse’s accusation that Trump was guilty of “pouring gasoline on these fires of division” and deserves some blame for the Capitol riot. The resolution also condemns Sasse for relaying that a White House official told him Trump was “delighted” as the attack on the Capitol unfolded, without naming “which officials said Trump was ‘delighted.’”
Another charge against Sasse is that he said Missouri senator Josh Hawley’s plan to object to the certification was “a really dumbass stunt, based on lies that the election was fraudulent.”
“Senator Ben Sasse has persistently engaged in public acts of ridicule and calumny against President Donald J. Trump, through both the spoken and written word, questioning the president’s agenda, decisions, motives, and competency,” the resolution declares.
NOW WATCH: ‘Trump Denies Responsibility for Capitol Riot, Condemns Impeachment Push’
Sasse responded to the censure resolution, which will likely receive a vote on February 13, with a video addressed directly to the members of the Nebraska GOP State Central Committee.
Sasse says he’s “not gonna spend any time trying to talk you out of another censure.” The senator is blunt in laying blame for the January 6 riot on Trump.
“What Americans saw three weeks ago was ugly shameful mob violence to disrupt a constitutionally mandated meeting of Congress to affirm that peaceful transfer of power,” Sasse says. “It happened because the president lied to you.”
Sasse continues:
He lied about the election results for 60 days, despite losing 60 straight court challenges — many handed down by wonderful Trump-appointed judges.
He lied by saying that the vice president could violate his constitutional oath and just declare a new winner.
He then riled a mob that attacked the Capitol — many chanting “Hang Pence.”
If that president were a Democrat, we both know how you’d respond. But, because he had “Republican” behind his name, you’re defending him.
In the video, Sasse says that when he first ran for office and “pledged to put the Constitution ahead of party politics” and “always vote my conscience,” he received standing ovations and cheers from members of the committee.
“Let’s be clear: The anger in this state party has never been about me violating principle or abandoning conservative policy — I’m one of the most conservative voters in the Senate — the anger’s always been simply about me not bending the knee to one guy.”
“The party could purge Trump-skeptics,” Sasse says, “but I’d like to convince you that not only is this ‘civic cancer’ for the nation, but it’s also terrible for our party.” He notes that in November he received “tens of thousands more votes than President Trump” within the state.
“Look at Omaha, which he lost by a lot — we won handily. Why? I think the reason’s simple: Nebraskans aren’t rage addicts,” says Sasse.
Sasse’s 2020 Democratic opponent was abandoned by the state Democratic party after it was revealed that the Democratic candidate had made an extremely lewd comment about a female staffer, but Sasse’s overperformance of Trump in November was notable given that Trump had essentially encouraged Republicans in the state to abandon him.
Trump endorsed Sasse in September 2019, and Sasse went on to win a May 2020 primary by 50 points against a challenger who accused Sasse of being too critical of Trump.
Trump turned on Sasse in October 2020 after a constituent asked Sasse during a conference call why he criticizes Trump so much. Sasse pointed to Trump’s erratic response to the pandemic, as well as “the way he kisses dictators’ butts. . . . I mean, the way he ignores that the Uyghurs are in literal concentration camps in Xinjiang. Right now, he hasn’t lifted a finger on behalf of the Hong-Kongers. The United States now regularly sells out our allies under his leadership, the way he treats women.”
Trump responded by calling Sasse a “liability to the Republican Party and an embarrassment to the Great State of Nebraska” and suggested Nebraska Republicans “should find a new and more viable candidate.”
Sasse’s remarks during that October conference call are featured in the Resolution of Censure.
Sasse’s full response to the resolution may be viewed here:
Here’s the full text of the draft resolution:
A RESOLUTION OF CENSURE AGAINST U.S. SENATOR BENJAMIN ERIC SASSE
by Declaration of the State Central Committee of the Nebraska Republican Party
Whereas, on 26 January 2021, 55 U.S. Senators voted to reject a Point of Order, raised by Senator Rand Paul — that impeachment of a private citizen is unconstitutional; and that among those senators objecting were five Republicans, including: Senator Susan Collins (ME), Senator Lisa Murkowski (AK), Senator Mitt Romney (UT), Senator Ben Sasse (NE), and Senator Pat Toomey (PA);
Whereas, on 8 January 2021, as reported by Grant Schulte, of the Associated Press (‘Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse says Trump incited Capitol Riot’) — in response to President Donald J. Trump’s speech, given 6 January 2021 at the ‘Save America’ rally, at Ellipse Park in Washington, D.C — Senator Sasse publicly declared that the president incited a riot at the U.S. Capitol building, accusing him of “pouring gasoline on these fires of division,” and further asserted that the president deserves some blame;
Whereas, on 8 January 2021, as reported by Lexi Lonas, of The Hill (‘Sasse says Trump was “delighted” and “excited” by reports of Capitol riot’), during an on-air radio interview with Hugh Hewitt, Senator Sasse stated: “As this was unfolding on television, Donald Trump was walking around the White House, confused about why other people on his team weren’t as excited as he was, as you had rioters pushing against Capitol Police trying to get into the building,”Sasse asserted of President Trump “He was delighted” [about the riot.] Senator Sasse continued: “I’m sure you’ve also had conversations with other senior White House officials, as I have” – but the senator did not name which officials said Trump was “delighted;”
Whereas, on 8 January 2021, as reported by Lexi Lonas, of The Hill (‘Sasse says Trump was “delighted” and “excited” by reports of Capitol riot’), during the interview with Hugh Hewitt, Senator Sasse attacked the integrity of Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO), the first senator to announce he would object to the Electoral College results. Senator Sasse called it “a really dumbass stunt, based on lies that the election was fraudulent;”
Whereas, on 8 January 2021, in an interview with CBS This Morning, Senator Sasse stated: “The American people have been lied to, chiefly by Donald Trump, and lies have consequences, and those consequences are now found in five dead Americans, and a Capital building that’s in shambles. Legislators should not be aiding and abetting those kinds of lies. The president has disregarded his oath of office . . . The House, if they come together and have a process, I will definitely consider whatever articles they might move; because, as I’ve told you, I believe the president has disregarded his oath of office. He swore an oath to the American people to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution. He acted against that. What he did was wicked;”
Whereas, on 15 October 2020, in a Washington Post story — ‘GOP Sen. Sasse says Trump mistreats women, flirts with white supremacy and secretly mocks evangelicals’ — WP reporter Colby Itkowitz wrote the following: Sen. Ben Sasse eviscerated President Trump during a phone call with constituents, in which the Nebraska Republican accused the president of cozying up to dictators, mistreating women, flirting with white supremacists, and irresponsibly handling the corona virus pandemic.
Sasse’s comments were disclosed by the Washington Examiner, which obtained an audio recording of the call, a campaign telephone townhall with Nebraska voters.
Sasse’s spokesman verified that the reporting was accurate, but declined to answer more specific questions such as when the call happened. . . . In the call, Sasse unleashed a torrent of criticisms at Trump:
“The way he kisses dictators’ butts. I mean, the way he ignores the Uighurs, or literal concentration camps in Xinjiang. Right now, he hasn’t lifted a finger on behalf of the Hong-Kongers. The United States now regularly sells out our allies, under his leadership, the way he treats women, spends like a drunken sailor. The ways I criticize President Obama for that kind of spending; I’ve criticized President Trump for as well. He mocks evangelicals behind closed doors. His family has treated the presidency like a business opportunity. He’s flirted with white supremacists.”
The senator criticized the president’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic on the call… Sasse said Trump mishandled it from the beginning. “But the reality is that he careened from curb to curb. First, he ignored covid. And then he went into full economic shutdown mode. He was the one who said 10 to 14 days of shutdown would fix this. And that was always wrong. I mean, and so I don’t think the way he’s led through covid has been reasonable or responsible, or right;”
Whereas Senator Ben Sasse has persistently engaged in public acts of ridicule and calumny against President Donald J. Trump, through both the spoken and written word, questioning the president’s agenda, decisions, motives, and competency;
Whereas Senator Ben Sasse has publically shown contempt for Donald J. Trump, and likewise he has made disparaging remarks towards the Trump family;
Whereas Senator Ben Sasse has repeatedly, through imprudent public remarks, demonstrated a general disrespect for the Office of the President, and likewise for the reputation of his fellow Republican senators, mocking their integrity;
Whereas Senator Ben Sasse shows indifference to the factual evidence of illicit acts, as were committed during the 3 November 2020 election, including: affidavits from individuals who witnessed intimidation, irregularities and fraud in the submission and counting of ballots; malfeasance, committed by elected and appointed officials within the executive and judiciary branch of state governments — as occurred in Pennsylvania, Georgia, Wisconsin, and Michigan – in violation of state election laws and / or constitutions, usurping the plenary power granted to state legislatures by the U.S. Constitution (Article 1, Sec. 4, Clause 1, and Article 2, Clause 2) in determining the manner, time and place of elections, and the manner in choosing electors.
Whereas Senator Ben Sasse disregards or is inexcusably ignorant of the laws governing speech, specifically that test established by the U.S. Supreme Court in its decision Brandenburg v. Ohio 395 U.S. 444 (1969), which set forth the elements required to judge whether a person’s words violate the criminal code against inciting violence.
Whereas in light of Brandenburg and the Court’s unchallenged unchanged precedent thereof, President Donald J. Trump’s speech of 6 January 2021 does not meet the prescribed elements that establish, in fact and law, an act of criminal incitement;
Whereas Senator Ben Sasse, in defiance of the Constitution’s plain meaning, as to the penalty incurred by impeachment and conviction — removal from office (Article 2, Sec. 4, and Article 1, Sec. 3, Clause 7), now seeks to impeach the private citizen, Donald J. Trump — and thus we now have cause to wonder whether Senator Sasse would willingly violate the prohibition against Bills of Attainder (Article 1, Sec. 9, Clause 3);
Therefore be it resolved: in consideration of the remarks and actions of Senator Sasse, as stipulated above in this complaint, and following from our formal deliberation, we the undersigned, individually and corporately, agree and declare that Senator Benjamin Eric Sasse warrants and shall incur the penalty of CENSURE, and further we declare such penalty is now imposed by this lawfully convened body –The Nebraska Republican State Central Committee. CENSURE is decreed and so moved, this day, 13 February 2021.
JOHN MCCORMACK is the Washington correspondent for National Review and a fellow at the National Review Institute.