Former Sen. Nancy Kassebaum says Trump should be impeached after Capitol riot
Former Kansas Republican Sen. Nancy Kassebaum said Thursday that President Donald Trump should be impeached for inciting the mob that stormed the Capitol.
Kassebaum, 88, said “someone has to be responsible” for the riots that brought the certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s victory to a halt for several hours Wednesday as lawmakers were evacuated and rioters ransacked the building.
“I think the president should be impeached,” Kassebaum told The Star. “I think he’s the one that should be held responsible.”
Kassebaum’s comments are remarkable, coming from a Republican who represented Kansas in the Senate for 18 years. She was the first woman from Kansas to serve in the Senate and is the daughter of Alf Landon, a towering figure in Kansas political history who served as governor and was the 1936 Republican presidential nominee.
Her comments come as a growing number of politicians call for Trump’s removal from office, either through impeachment or through the use of the 25th Amendment. That provision would allow Vice President Mike Pence, along with a majority of the cabinet, to strip Trump of power until his term ends on Jan. 20.
Kassebaum said many of the president’s supporters had been deluded and had become so emotionally caught up that they believe “destroying something will make it, will change it, I guess.”
“I have no idea how anyone could go in and create the havoc that really destroyed the Capitol in so many ways,” Kassebaum said.
This story was originally published January 7, 2021 at 10:42 AM with the headline "Former Sen. Nancy Kassebaum says Trump should be impeached after Capitol riot."
