Allies Aid, Mayorkos is off the Hook, and The Jury is Ready
Hello Everyone and Welcome back to another week of Politics Explained. Hopefully, everyone is having a fantastic April and getting ready to learn more about the Politics of this week. If you’re new, we publish short and concise blogs every Friday that recap the happenings of Capitol Hill. This week has brought many things, including possible movement on Ukraine and Israel aid, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson possibly losing his speakership, Secretary of Homeland Security’s possible impeachment conviction getting squashed in the Senate, and the jury for former President Trump’s trial getting picked. There is a lot this week, so let's dive right in!
On Monday, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson said that there will be separate bills on aid for Ukraine, Israel, and some other US allies in Asia. While the bills were introduced, the House still does not know when votes will occur, but it is expected to be on Saturday. From now until Saturday there will be many bumps along the road, as the bills are not set in stone yet. Also earlier this week another Member of Congress said that they will vote to end Speaker Johnson’s speakership if he follows through with these bills. It is possible that Democrats might help save Speaker Johnson's position if he helps pass a bill to give aid to Ukraine and Israel. More will be coming of this, so stay tuned!
Earlier this year Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas, was impeached by the House of Representatives. This week the Senate dismissed the articles of impeachment with a 51-49 vote along party lines. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said the charges failed to meet “the high standards of high crimes and misdemeanors.” This process started with the House Republicans voting for impeachment, which took two attempts because it failed in the first vote. The charges were based on Secretary Mayorkas’ perceived mismanagement of the Southern border and how many immigrants were coming into the country. Senate Republicans felt like a full impeachment trial should have been held, but they were outvoted by Senate Democrats.
For Donald Trump's impending trial in Manhattan, 12 of the Jury members have been chosen and one alternate has also been picked. Trump is charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. The trial could begin as early as Monday, although there are still 5 more alternate* jurors who need to be picked before a trial can begin. Two jurors were dismissed earlier - one because a prosecutor didn’t believe the credibility of the juror answering the question and the other because she was concerned about her identity becoming public. The maximum sentences for the charges against Trump are 4 years for each count, but the final say is left to the judge. Stay tuned for more to come in the next few weeks.
Definition of the Week (Alternate): Taking the place of another.
