Pennsylvania republican U.S. Senator Pat Toomey is facing harsh criticism from within his own party after he joined six other GOP Senators in voting to convict former President Donald Trump of inciting insurrection.
Toomey told KDKA Radio's Marty Griffin, "We can't be a party that's willing to look the other way when a president loses an election and then tries terrible and illegal and unconstitutional means of staying in power. That's not acceptable. That's not conservative. That's not republican."
Toomey was one of seven Republican senators who voted on Saturday to convict Trump on charges that he incited the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol.
He said he voted his conscience. "I'm not elected to be a weathervane or a pollster, I'm elected to exercise my judgement about what's right, what's wrong, what's best for Pennsylvania; that's what a representative form of government is all about."
Toomey says he disagrees with critics who say Senators are not in office to vote their conscience. He said his vote was the right thing to do.
"I'm just trying to suggest... let's differentiate between the good things that President Trump did and the completely unacceptable things that he did," said Toomey. "And I think, in time, people will make that distinction."
On another issue, Toomey said he thinks students should have been back in the classroom long time ago, given their low infection rate with the coronavirus.
He also said he would be in favor of moving up school teachers on the priority list for vaccinations to protect them in the classroom.
The senator announced in October that he would not be seeking re-election in 2022. Shortly after that announcement, he and former Pennsylvania Governor released a joint statement advocating for term limits in Congress.
Earlier this month, PA's Lt. Governor John Fetterman officially announced he will run for U.S. Senate in 2022.
