During the U.S. Senate impeachment trial, senators have found a variety of ways to stay awake during the hours-long, tedious legal arguments.
Since reporters are not allowed to have cameras, laptops or phones in the Senate chamber, they must be creative with their stories. The public can watch through the Senate video feed, but it does not show the entire Senate floor, so that’s where they come in.
Here’s a collection of the interesting tidbits.
Sen. Pat Toomey, a Pennsylvania Republican, is in charge of the Senate candy desk. It is a tradition that started in 1968 with Sen. George Murphy, a California Republican, who kept candy in his desk and also offered his desk to colleagues to stock with candy.
Hershey’s Chocolate, which is headquartered in Pennsylvania, replenished the stockpile just in time for the trial. Toomey also sent a basket of the Pennsylvania confections up to the press gallery for reporters to enjoy.
According to The Hill, Sen. John Thune, a South Dakota Republican, has been getting his sugar fix on Nerds and Swedish Fish throughout the trial.
Sen. Richard Burr, a North Carolina Republican, gifted his colleagues fidget spinners to keep their hands busy. Several senators have even been spotted using them.
While senators aren’t getting in much physical activity, the Senate pages are making up for it. Pages are high school students from across the country who assist with the daily Senate activities.
Since no cell phones are allowed in the Senate chamber, pages are responsible for relaying handwritten notes between senators and their staff, who are not allowed in the chamber. Pages also fetch beverages for senators, who are only allowed to have water or milk to drink.
Sen. Tom Cotton, an Arkansas Republican, was the first to ask for milk. Following his lead, a couple handful of senators have been seen drinking milk, which has gained so much attention that CQ Roll Call reporter Joshua Eaton created a public spreadsheet of milk and snack consumption during the impeachment trial.
Though senators aren’t tweeting during the trial, President Donald Trump has more than made up for their lack of tweets. On Jan. 22, Trump broke his record for most tweets and retweets in a day, totaling over 140.
Per a couple ABC reporters, Sen. Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican, has worked on a crossword puzzle and doodled a drawing of the Capitol.
According to CQ Roll Call, Sen. Cory Gardner, a Colorado Republican, jokingly passed a 5-Hour Energy shot to Sen. Jim Risch, an Idaho Republican, who had been caught snoozing earlier in the week.
Sen. Ben Sasse, a Nebraska Republican, was spotted by The Hill reporter Al Weaver with a Red Man pouch on his desk and asked if the old spittoons were decorative.
And finally, one senator was caught digging for gold, if you catch my drift. I’ll give you one clue: he’s not going to find the $34 trillion to pay for his “Medicare for All” plan in there.
Editor’s note: Seymour Klierly writes Washington Whispers for the Journal from inside the Beltway.
