North Carolina GOP to vote on censuring Richard Burr after impeachment vote
Raleigh, North Carolina — The North Carolina Republican Party is expected to vote Monday on whether to censure Senator Richard Burr over his vote to convict former President Donald Trump during Trump's second impeachment trial. Party spokesman Tim Wigginton told multiple news outlets Sunday that the group's central committee would meet for the vote Monday night.
Burr is one of seven Republicans who voted to convict Trump of "incitement of insurrection" for his role in last month's assault on the U.S. Capitol. Burr initially voted against the trial's constitutionality, but said he resolved to be an "impartial juror" once the full Senate decided to proceed.
North Carolina GOP Chairman Michael Whatley said in a statement Saturday that Burr's vote to convict "in a trial that he declared unconstitutional is shocking and disappointing."
Burr said in a statement after the trial that Trump "bears responsibility" for the riot at the U.S. Capitol on January 6.
"The evidence is compelling that President Trump is guilty of inciting an insurrection against a coequal branch of government and that the charge rises to the level of high Crimes and Misdemeanors," Burr stated Saturday. "Therefore, I have voted to convict."
Ultimately, Trump was acquitted of the charge because the 57-43 vote fell short of the two-thirds majority needed for conviction.
Burr, who is retiring at the end of his term, is not the only Republican who voted to convict Mr. Trump facing backlash. The Louisiana Republican Party censured Senator Bill Cassidy just hours after the vote, the state GOP announced Saturday, and the Nebraska GOP mounted an effort to censure Senator Ben Sasse, which stemmed from his rebuke of Mr. Trump following the January 6 assault. Sasse also voted to convict the former president.