Sen. Bill Cassidy Dismisses Home-State Censure Over Trump Conviction Vote: I Was Elected to Defend the Constitution

Senator Bill Cassidy (R) defended his vote to convict Donald Trump while shrugging off the anger of his Republican supporters in Louisiana over his decision.

Cassidy was among the 7 Republicans who broke party ranks on Saturday by voting to convict Trump for inciting his supporters to violently storm the U.S. Capitol. While the vote failed to reach the necessary supermajority to convict Trump, the trial still ended with 57 guilty votes to 43 votes for acquittal.

When Cassidy gave an interview to ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, he slammed Trump’s post-2020 election conduct and the way in which it culminated in the mob of January 6th.

“It was clear that he wished lawmakers be intimidated,” Cassidy said. “And even after he knew there was violence taking place, he continued to basically sanction the mob being there. And not until later did he ask them to leave. All of that points to a motive and a method, and that is wrong. He should be held accountable.”

The Louisiana Republican Party unanimously voted to censure Cassidy over his impeachment vote, so Stephanopoulos brought that up in order to ask Cassidy for his reaction. Cassidy retorted that the facts establish Trump’s guilt, that “people want to trust their leaders,” and that he was attempting to hold Trump accountable in order to uphold that trust from his voters.

“That’s the trust that I have from the people who elected me, and I’m very confident that as time passes people will move to that position,” Cassidy said. “I was elected to uphold an oath to support and defend the Constitution. The majority of the people in Louisiana want that to be the case. And I have respected that trust. I have voted to support and defend the Constitution.”

Watch above, via ABC.

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!