About ten minutes ago I read a BBC article wherein several Democratic Senators, apparently starved for attention, sided with Mitch McConnell:
Senate Democrats said prolonging the standoff would be pointless.
"The longer it goes on the less urgent it becomes," Senator Feinstein said on Wednesday, Bloomberg News reported.
"So if it's serious and urgent, send them over. If it isn't, don't send it over."
The political trial of Mr Trump cannot begin until the Democratic-controlled House sends its articles of impeachment, the charges against the president, to the Senate.
Senator Chris Coons, a Connecticut Democrat, told Politico: "I respect the fact that [Pelosi] is concerned about the fact about whether or not there will be a fair trial, but I do think it is time to get on with it."
Senator Jon Tester, a Montana Democrat, said: "I don't know what leverage we have. It looks like the cake is already baked."
Joe Manchin, a West Virginia Democrat, also said he believed it was time to start the Senate trial.
I rarely call my Senator but this prompted me to register my extreme dissatisfaction with Feinstein’s office.
The staffer who took the call all but refused to hear what I had to say!
He started off by insisting that they were not sure if the senator had been misquoted, so I let him go on for a bit until I was sure that he was definitely NOT saying that she had been misquoted, but started talking about her talking points that she wants people to talk about instead. I cut him off and told him that I didn’t have time for this, that if she indeed was misquoted she should make a loud statement to that effect immediately, and that I’d like to register my comments. Then he started arguing with me, talking over me, talking about talking points. I said something to the effect of, “Please! Allow me to just get my statement in -”
He hung up on me.
I called back, of course, he began by arguing with me some more. I let him know that I wanted to get my statement in, and wanted to hear nothing from him. He finally relented and I told him,...
That, while I am not a big fan of Nancy Pelosi, the senator is not helping our cause by publicly breaking with her and house democrats on this issue, and that she is wrong and that Pelosi is right about this. And please, if she can’t show unanimity, just say nothing.
I honestly do feel sorry for the guy taking my call, but I am incensed that he absolutely tried to prevent me from making any criticism. This can only be due to a top-down directive. That is probably the most alarming thing about this exchange. I hope Senator Feinstein tells us why she is refusing to hear honest criticism from constituents.
Please call your senator today and express yourself more eloquently than I did. Here are the numbers of those mentioned in the article:
Senator Dianne Feinstein
1 Post St #2450
San Francisco, CA 94104
(415) 393-0707
Senator Chris Coons
1105 N. Market Street, Suite 100
Wilmington, DE 19801
(302) 573-6345
Senator Jon Tester
Judge Jameson Federal Building
2900 4th Ave N, Suite 201
Billings, MT 59101
Phone: (406) 252-0550
Joe Manchin
306 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington DC 20510
(202) 224-3954
(Can’t seem to find a number for his own office)