What’s happening next week?

And now, the next level — some questions and answers.
 
Why is this “unprecedented”? Congress has never impeached a sitting Cabinet officer before.
 
But what about William Belknap in 1876? Good reference (and a recent trivia subject)!
 
It is true. The House of Representatives moved to impeach then-Secretary of War William Belknap in 1876, charging him with corruption. But he resigned minutes before the House took the impeachment vote. He was firmly out of office when the Senate held its trial. (And acquitted him.) This makes Mayorkas the first Cabinet secretary to be in office for impeachment. And only the second-ever impeached.
 
Why is this an “unprecedented question of process”? Glad you caught that. Not only is this the first impeachment of a sitting Cabinet officer, Democrats may make it the first time that senators have dismissed an impeachment out of hand, with no substantial trial arguments.
 
Some Senate Republicans and most all House Republicans are incensed about this idea. They argue that a full trial is a “constitutional obligation.” 
 
*Can* the Senate dismiss the charges without a full trial? This is somewhat debated, as you see above. But the answer is yes, according to constitutional scholars in both parties and retired Senate staffers I spoke with.
 
Tell us more. Senate impeachment trials are governed by the U.S. Constitution, foremost. But it offers little specifics on the process, other than, “The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments. When sitting for that Purpose, they shall be on Oath or Affirmation.”
 
Other rules for impeachment trials are part of a nine-page section of the Senate manual, helpfully titled, “Rules of procedure and practice in the Senate when sitting on impeachment trials.” 
 
And those rules say nothing about whether the Senate can or cannot move to dismiss a trial. 
 
This is why scholars believe these are powers the Senate retains under the rest of its standing rules and as part of common trial procedure.
 
So what will the Senate do?
 
First, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has some decisions to make. He must first decide whether to move to dismiss or table the articles of impeachment.
 
A motion to dismiss has some disadvantages. For one, it includes time for debate, for up to two hours total. Another disadvantage? It may be a riskier vote for vulnerable Democrats than a motion to table impeachment. 
 
A motion to table, on the other hand, could be seen as a sort of “nuclear option,” precisely because it would block the chance for any real debate or statement.
 
While the House impeachment vote was a bare majority, it was still the majority decision of the chamber. Many Republicans could find a motion to immediately table this impeachment as a declaration of “procedural war.” 
 
Bottom line: We expect the Senate to begin and end the Mayorkas trial quickly. Such a decision will be met with vocal objections and protestation from conservative Republicans, who may use points of order to slow down the process.

In the end, the Democratic-controlled Senate can quickly dispose of this impeachment. Doing so would set a precedent, which may make their opponents in the Republican Party give more thought to the same idea, should a president in their party be impeached in the future.

WE WOULD LIKE TO HEAR FROM YOU!
 
Which and what kinds of political stories matter to you? And which ones have become oversaturated? What’s happening in your state, city, town or neighborhood that ought to get more attention? Email your responses to [email protected].
 
Your suggestions can help guide our coverage this election year.

Your humbled Here’s the Deal editor also forgot the link to the large “Biden” head sculpture mentioned in last week’s write-up. Thanks to the readers who flagged this.

HOW AMERICANS FEEL ABOUT VIOLENCE AND POLITICS
By Laura Santhanam, @LauraSanthanam
Health Reporter & Coordinating Producer for Polling
 
One in 5 U.S. adults believe Americans may have to resort to violence to get their own country back on track, according to the latest PBS NewsHour/NPR/Marist poll.
 
Most Americans, no matter their political affiliation, do not believe that violence is a solution to domestic political divisions, the poll found. But Republicans were more likely than Democrats or independents — and slightly more likely than the population overall — to say force may be needed to course-correct.

During recent reelection campaign rallies, presumptive Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump has questioned the humanity of immigrants, referred to a much debated “blood bath for the country” if he does not get reelected and describes people who have been convicted for Jan. 6 criminal offenses as “hostages.”
 
His speeches often attempt “to convince people the country is going downhill, that things are awful and only he can fix them,” said Barbara McQuade, a law professor at the University of Michigan.
 
These latest poll results suggest “to some extent, these strategies are working” and highlight that “we need strong voices pushing back,” said McQuade, who served as U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan.
 
“It’s an incredibly dangerous place to be,” she said.
 
 
A HISTORIC PAY HIKE FOR TEACHERS IN ST. LOUIS

By Gabrielle Hays, @thegabhour
Communities Correspondent, St. Louis
 
Teachers working at St. Louis Public Schools will receive a 17 percent bump in pay over the next three years — the largest raise they’ve seen in two decades.
 
The new raises are expected to bring the average starting teacher salary in the district up to around $50,000 a year, higher than the state average, which remains at $34,052. Missouri ranks 50th in the nation for average beginning teacher pay, according to the National Education Association. 
 
For all of the 15 years Josie Johnston has been a teacher, she’s also worked as a senior pharmacy technician. Along with teaching high school and coaching student speech and debate teams, she holds down a job at the pharmacy. This year, she had to take on an extra class.
 
At some point, there was a shift in this country in how teachers were treated, she said.
 
“Teachers stopped being respected, stopped being paid and not fairly compensated and given more and more and more and more to do,” she added.
 
Zooming out: A 2021 survey showed how much low salaries contributed to nationwide shortages of teachers.
 
Eighty-two percent of classroom teachers said they either currently or previously worked multiple jobs to make ends meet. Of those, more than half of classroom teachers said they were currently working multiple jobs.
 
“What we’re seeing across the country is not necessarily a shortage of qualified, caring, creative, passionate educators, we’re seeing a shortage of professionally compensated and respected education jobs,” said Kim Anderson, NEA executive director.
 
U.S. lawmakers and state leaders often cite teacher pay as a critical issue. Eleven teacher pay bills were signed into law last year, according to an estimate by the Georgetown University think tank Future Ed. This year, more than a dozen of the country’s governors mentioned salary increases during their annual addresses, as did President Joe Biden in his State of the Union address last month. 
 
But action often relies on state Legislatures. In Missouri, grants approved in the state budget have offered temporary state-matched funds for districts to raise salaries. Lawmakers have sought a more permanent solution. For the last two years, a bipartisan effort has pushed legislation that would raise the minimum teacher salary to $38,000. This year’s version is advancing through the House.
 
In the meantime, educators have said they are tired and wondering how long they will last.

#POLITICSTRIVIA
By Matt Loffman, @mattloff
Politics Producer
 
Alejandro Mayorkas is the first Latino, and first immigrant, to be in charge of the Department of Homeland Security. Born in Cuba, he is the son of Jewish parents, with a mother who fled the Holocaust.
 
He is also the third Cuban-born person to serve in a U.S. presidential Cabinet.
 
Our question: Who was the first?
 
Send your answers to [email protected] or tweet using #PoliticsTrivia. The first correct answers will earn a shout-out next week.
 
Last week, we asked: Which state did Jeannette Pickering Rankin, the first woman elected to Congress, represent?
 
The answer: Montana. As several readers, including Montanans, pointed out: The Republican and women’s rights advocate was also the only member of Congress to vote against U.S. entry in both World Wars.
 
Congratulations to our winners: Carol Rutz and Brad Robideau!
 
Thank you all for reading and watching. We’ll drop into your inbox next week.