McConnell: Roy Moore Will Face Ethics Probe ‘Immediately’ If He Wins Seat

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., talks to reporters before the vote to confirm President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, April 7, 2017. The Republican majority changed Senate rules to lower the vote threshold for Supreme Court nominees from 60 votes to a simple majority to counter Democratic resistance. McConnell also supported Trump's airstrike on Syria. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., talks to reporters before the vote to confirm President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, April 7, 2017. The Repu... Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., talks to reporters before the vote to confirm President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, April 7, 2017. The Republican majority changed Senate rules to lower the vote threshold for Supreme Court nominees from 60 votes to a simple majority to counter Democratic resistance. McConnell also supported Trump's airstrike on Syria. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) MORE LESS
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) on Tuesday afternoon indicated he will not let Roy Moore serve in the U.S. Senate for long, if at all.

During a Wall Street Journal event, McConnell said that Moore would face a swift ethics probe if he wins the December election to fill the Alabama Senate seat.

“I think it’s safe to say that if he were to be sworn in, he would immediately be in a process before the Senate Ethics Committee,” McConnell said at the Wall Street Journal CEO Council when asked if he would try to expel Moore from the Senate. “He would be sworn in and be asked to testify under oath as well, and it would be a rather unusual beginning.”

McConnell and Republican leaders are also discussing ways to “salvage the seat” before the December election. McConnell said that a write-in campaign is the only option Republicans have to replace Moore before the election. He said that Attorney General Jeff Sessions likely has the best chance to pull off a write-in campaign but that he may not be “available.”

“The Alabamian who would fit that standard would be the attorney general,” Mr. McConnell said. “He’s totally well known and extremely popular in Alabama.”

Asked if a write-in campaign by Sessions is his preferred option, McConnell replied, “I’d like to save the seat, and it’s a heck of a dilemma when you’ve got a completely unacceptable candidate bearing the label of your party within a month of the election.”

Earlier on Tuesday, McConnell said that he and the White House were discussing the options for the race in the wake of allegations from several women that Moore pursued romantic or sexual relationships with them while they were teenagers. He said he would have further discussions with administration officials upon Trump’s return from his trip to Asia.

Latest Livewire

Notable Replies

  1. It couldn’t happen to a more deserving fellow.

  2. Roy: " It’s usually me, who do the probing, buddy !"

  3. These smug sanctimonious fucks are always projecting pervs. Child rapists, regular rapists, porn addicts, etc. And this small handful of women speaking out is just the tip of the iceberg. Wouldn’t be surprised if it still going on. Something fundamentally broken inside people like this.

  4. Republicans got ethics?
    Who knew?

  5. Do they? Really?

    McConnell is lobbying to replace the guy accused of preying on children with a guy facing multiple perjury counts for lying to Congress, and has a high percentage chance of being named in a Mueller indictment in coming months.

    The interesting part to me is, how strongly McConnell is lobbying for Sessions, the sitting AG. At the very least, this makes is crystal clear that the WH considers Sessions completely expendable. They are talking about…with McConnell, a man they have an ongoing feud…firing him so he can be run as a write in candidate, which is a long shot at best.

    Sessions isn’t just being thrown under the bus. He is being tied to the undercarriage while the whole bus is being driven over a cliff.

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

32 more replies

Participants

Avatar for system1 Avatar for paulw Avatar for imkmu3 Avatar for fargo116 Avatar for epicurus Avatar for dave48 Avatar for krusher Avatar for steviedee111 Avatar for teenlaqueefa Avatar for sickneffintired Avatar for daveyjones64 Avatar for theghostofeustacetilley Avatar for tao Avatar for benthere Avatar for tena Avatar for clauscph Avatar for jacksonhts Avatar for chlarry Avatar for tiowally Avatar for michaelryerson Avatar for not_so_fluffy Avatar for centralasiaexpat Avatar for cub_calloway Avatar for the_loan_arranger

Continue Discussion
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Deputy Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: