WASHINGTON (AP) — Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday named two House chairmen who led President Donald Trump’s impeachment inquiry as prosecutors for Trump’s Senate trial.
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Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, who led the probe, and Judiciary Chair Rep. Jerrold Nadler, whose committee approved the impeachment articles, as among the managers of the prosecution.
“Today is an important day,” said Pelosi, flanked by the team. “This is about the Constitution of the United States.”’
Schiff and Nadler will lead the seven member team that includes a diverse selection of lawmakers, particularly those with courtroom experience.
They include Hakeem Jeffries of New York, Sylvia Garcia of Texas, Val Demings of Florida, Jason Crow of Colorado and Zoe Lofgren of California.
During Pelosi’s press conference, Trump tweeted that impeachment is “another Con Job by the Do Nothing Democrats. All of this work was supposed to be done by the House, not the Senate!”
Trump was impeached by the Democratic-led House last month on charges of abuse of power over his pressure on Ukraine to investigate Democratic rival Joe Biden as Trump withheld aid from the country. He was also charged with obstructing Congress’ ensuing probe.
The House is set to vote later in the day to send the articles of impeachment to the Senate for a trial on whether the charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress are grounds for his removal. The managers will walk then walk the articles across the Capitol to the Senate.
Trump’s trial will be only the third presidential impeachment trial in U.S. history, and it comes against the backdrop of a politically divided nation and an election year.
New details of Trump’s efforts on Ukraine emerged late Tuesday, increasing pressure on senators to call witnesses in the trial, a step that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has been reluctant to take.
House investigators announced they were turning over a “trove” of new records of phone calls, text messages and other information from Lev Parnas, an associate of Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani. Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff said the information shows Trump’s effort ‘’to coerce Ukraine into helping the President’s reelection campaign.” He said this and other new testimony must be included in the Senate trial.
The Senate is expected to transform into an impeachment court as early as Thursday, although significant proceedings wouldn’t begin until next Tuesday after the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. The Constitution calls for the chief justice to preside over senators, who serve as jurors, to swear an oath to deliver “impartial justice.”
McConnell, who is negotiating rules for the trial proceedings, said all 53 GOP senators are on board with his plan to start the session and consider the issue of witnesses later.
Senate Republicans also signaled they would reject the idea of simply voting to dismiss the articles of impeachment against Trump, as Trump himself has suggested. McConnell agreed he does not have the votes to do that.
“There is little or no sentiment in the Republican conference for a motion to dismiss,” McConnell said Tuesday. ‘’Our members feel we have an obligation to listen to the arguments.”
A mounting number of senators say they want to ensure the ground rules include the possibility of calling new witnesses.
Sen. Susan Collins of Maine is leading an effort among some Republicans, including Mitt Romney of Utah and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska for witness votes.
Romney said he wants to hear from John Bolton, the former national security adviser at the White House, who others have said raised alarms about the alternative foreign policy toward Ukraine being run by Giuliani.
Democrats have been pushing Republicans, who have a slim Senate majority, to consider new testimony, arguing that fresh information has emerged during Pelosi’s monthlong delay in transmitting the charges.
Republicans control the chamber, 53-47, and are all but certain to acquit Trump. It takes just 51 votes during the impeachment trial to approve rules or call witnesses. Just four GOP senators could form a majority with Democrats to insist on new testimony. It also would take only 51 senators to vote to dismiss the charges against Trump.
At Tuesday’s private GOP lunch, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky warned that if witnesses are allowed, defense witnesses could also be called. He and other Republicans want to subpoena Biden and his son, Hunter, who served on the board of a gas company in Ukraine, Burisma, while his father was vice president.
McConnell is drafting an organizing resolution that will outline the steps ahead. Approving it will be among their first votes of the trial, likely next Tuesday.
He prefers to model Trump’s trial partly on the process used for then-President Bill Clinton’s trial in 1999. It, too, contained motions for dismissal or calling new witnesses.
McConnell is hesitant to call new witnesses who would prolong the trial and put vulnerable senators who are up for reelection in 2020 in a bind with tough choices. At the same time, he wants to give those same senators ample room to show voters they are listening to demands for a fair trial.
Most Republicans now appear willing to go along with McConnell’s plan to start the trial first then consider witnesses later, rather than upfront, as Democrats want.
Even if senators are able to vote to call new witnesses, it is not at all clear there would be majorities to subpoena Bolton or the others.
Oh are we still wasting time on this coup trying to take down the greatest president since George Washington?
Just what we need 2 Jews leading this pack of morons.
Two Jewish prosecutors. Every single Orthodox Jewish Organization must publicly denounce this and distance themselves from Sciff and Nadler.
Yawn Boooooooooooring
2 soros FUNDED capo funded jews in name only.
Does that mean the republican senators get to cross examine these 2 crooks?? That’s gonna be fun! Get the popcorn ready
Great question no they are now protected
Individually. But if they get witnesses that put them in the middle of it. They can get indicted by feds
Nancy and all your patrons eat it and swallow it !!! Trump 2020
If the witnesses and facts prove that Trump did nothing wrong in withholding the aid from the Ukraine after a legitimate trial Trump has nothing to worry about and will be cleared.
If, however Mitch McConnell runs a sham trial with the GOP Senators having made up their minds before the evidence and witness testimony it will indeed be a historic moment that threatens our nation and dooms the GOP. If GOP Senators vote to acquit Trump because although he’s a criminal he’s their criminal they will pay a steep price at the polls. A event for the history books is about to occur.
Let’s face it boychicks. If you don’t participate in American civic life, don’t celebrate American Thanksgiving or the Fourth, don’t have kids in public school and think of yourselves ‘in golus’ your opinions about the IMPEACHMENT TRIAL of DISGRACED TRUMPF means nothing to anybody. And attacking SUCCESSFUL AMERICAN JEWS only reinforces the point..
5TResident*** you can analyze this till you’re blue in the face. WE know it, but thatt’s not how Jew hatred works, unfortunately.
The Jew Coup Devil Duo. Moronic lib Jew supporters haven’t learned from history.
The drunk bimbo is smart enough to use her Jewish useless fressers to do the work. This way , when something hits the fan the citizens will blame the Yids and not her.
Just waiting until some asskan shlepps Nadler and Schumer to the local rabbis for sponge cake and gefilte. These chutzpinyaks have no conscience.
This will be the Ringling Brothers Barnum and BS three ring circus of Democratic hate. Pelosi is the ringmaster and her two clowns Nadler and Schiff will entertain the masses.