OF THE
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State Democrats Consider Revoking Cuomo's Emergency PowersSee also:
Zack Fink | 1:30 PM ET Feb. 12, 2021
In a pushback against Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Democratic state lawmakers are strongly considering revoking broad emergency powers they granted him last year to manage the pandemic. The move comes in the wake of the governor's top aide privately admitting this week that the Cuomo administration intentionally withheld statistics about COVID-19 deaths of nursing home residents.
In an online conversation with state lawmakers, Cuomo aide Melissa DeRosa said the administration "froze" any release of the statistics out of fear that they could spur an investigation by Donald Trump's Justice Department. DeRosa's remarks were first reported in the New York Post.
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On Friday morning, members of the Democratic majority in the State Assembly held a closed virtual conference to discuss revoking the governor's powers. Sources tell NY1 that there was no conclusion, but the majority of members argued in favor of modifying or rolling back Cuomo's powers, while others seemed more inclined to simply let them expire as they are scheduled to do at the end of April.
A minority countered that having more than 50 local health departments making different decisions wasn't ideal, either.
Lawmakers from New York City expressed frustration over the governor and Mayor Bill de Blasio frequently being at odds during the pandemic and putting out competing and conflicting information, saying that some of the conflict could be avoided if Cuomo's emergency powers were revoked.
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"Impeaching Trump will accomplish very little, and it will not in any way improve the plight of the average American. It will only reinforce the spectacle and farce that have come to be synonymous with politics today."Mr. Trump's lawyers used the phrase "unconstitutional political theater" in their filing requests that the Senate dismiss the one charge that the former president incited rioters who invaded the U.S. Capitol building on Jan. 6. Democrats fired back that Mr. Trump committed "the most grievous constitutional crime" ever committed by a U.S. president.
A group of GOP senators met with former President Trump's legal team on Thursday to discuss strategy as they prepare to present their opening arguments in the impeachment trial. Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) were spotted entering the meeting, which took place in a room near the Senate chamber that Trump's team is using as a workspace. Cruz said:The dangling 14th Amendment...which way will it swing?"We were discussing their legal strategy and sharing our thoughts in terms of where the argument was and where to go. I think their job is to make clear how the house managers have not carried their burden of proof. They have not demonstrated that the president's conduct satisfies the legal standard of high crimes and misdemeanors."Cruz also defended the meeting on Twitter, arguing that senators aren't jurors and that "Schumer repeatedly confers w/ House managers, as always & fully appropriate."
The meeting comes after Trump's team was panned by GOP senators Tuesday as the defense argued that the trial was unconstitutional because Trump is no longer president. David Schoen, a member of Trump's legal team, defended the decision:"That's the practice here with impeachment. There's nothing about this thing that has any semblance of due process whatsoever. The senators were 'friendly guys,' and just talking about procedure, making sure we're familiar with the procedure. It was a very nice thing to make us feel welcome here."Schoen also said the senators did not give any indication of what questions they would ask during a question-and-answer session that could start as soon as Friday, once opening arguments wrap up. He has said he thought the trial could wrap Saturday, days ahead of what was initially expected. He had spoken with Trump and described him as "very upbeat."
Several Senate Democrats have not ruled out trying to prevent former President Donald Trump from holding future office by using a constitutional amendment originally created to keep Confederates from serving in the post-Civil War government.
With an unlikely 67 votes needed to convict Trump in the ongoing Senate impeachment trial, some Democrats have discussed invoking the 14th Amendment of the Constitution to keep Trump from office.
Such legislation would require a simple-majority vote. If Democrats and Republicans vote along party lines in the current 50-50 Senate makeup, Vice President Kamala Harris could cast a tie-breaking vote.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., on Thursday did not rule out the possibility, per Fox News: "We're first going to finish the impeachment trial and then Democrats will get together and discuss where we go next."
Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., said:"What Sen. Kaine is talking about is a censure resolution that would also specifically include the elements of the 14th Amendment that lead to disqualification from future office. That's intriguing to me and something I'm willing to look at. The bottom line here is we have to deliver accountability for the events of Jan. 6."
Comment: Biden has bent to the progressive crazies: