1:31 p.m. ET, January 13, 2020
Senators will take an oath to "do impartial justice" before the impeachment trial
Analysis from CNN's Zachary B. Wolf
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell talks to reporters after attending the weekly Senate Republicans policy luncheon at the U.S. Capitol on January 7, 2020.
Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images
Several senators, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, said they
would not exactly be impartial jurors ahead of Trump's looming impeachment trial. McConnell said back in December he had met with White House attorneys to coordinate on the trial.
Is it required for senators to be impartial? This is, after all, a political exercise.
Actually, yes.
Article II of the Constitution leaves a lot of the details of an impeachment trial up to the Senate, but it does make clear that no impeached president can be removed unless two-thirds of senators — usually 67 — agree and also that when sitting for an impeachment trial, "they shall be on Oath or Affirmation."
What's the oath senators will take?
The oath, which senators must take before trying an impeachment case, is spelled out in
Rule XXV of the Senate's rules on impeachment and specifically mentions impartiality:
"I solemnly swear (or affirm, as the case may be) that in all things appertaining to the trial of the impeachment of (the person on trial), now pending, I will do impartial justice according to the Constitution and laws; So help me God."
Keep in mind: There is some wiggle room here, maybe, since McConnell says he won't be "an impartial juror," not that he won't be doing "impartial justice according to the Constitution," which he will presumably swear to do.