Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) said on Sunday that the U.S. is getting “closer and closer” to a constitutional crisis as President Trump tests the judicial system, but is “not full-blown in one.”
In an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Klobuchar cited the pushback the Trump administration has faced from courts, constituents and a handful of GOP lawmakers, in explaining her position.
“I said back then, and I’ll say now, we’re getting closer and closer to a constitutional crisis,” Klobuchar said, when asked about a statement two months ago when she said the country was not in a constitutional crisis.
“Why do I think that we’re not full-blown in one? Because the judges are standing up and doing their job, because you’re starting to see a little inkling of some Republicans — all we need is four in the House, four in the Senate — to stand up on things like tariffs,” she continued.
Four Republican senators voted earlier this month for a resolution to undo Trump’s 25 percent tariffs on Canadian imports. The resolution expressed the sentiment of the Senate and did not have the force of law, but the 51-48 passage dealt an embarrassing blow to the president.
“When you start seeing them actually vote to get rid of the Canadian tariffs — a bill that Sen. [Tim] Kaine [D-Va.] and I and Sen. [Mark] Warner [D-Va.] put forward — you start to see, is there a glimmer of hope that they’re going to stand up for this nation as well?” Klobuchar said in the interview.
She noted pushback from constituents, as well, to some of Trump’s policies. She said she spoke to farmers during a just-completed 19-county rural tour who, Klobuchar said, told her, “I voted for Donald Trump, but I’m not happy with how this is happening. My 401(k) is down. I can’t figure out Social Security. No one’s answering the phone.”
“That’s the chaos you’re seeing,” Klobuchar said. “And I believe, as long as these courts hold and the constituents hold and the Congress starts standing up, our democracy will hold.”
“But Donald Trump is trying to pull us down into the sewer of a crisis. There is no doubt about it. He likes shock and awe. He likes when things are a mess. And we all must stand up against it.”
