An emotional second day of trial ended in procedural chaos when a Republican senator objected to the testimony that cited him as the source for a conversation that former President Donald J. Trump had during the attack on the Capitol at the heart of the case.
In the final hour of arguments on Wednesday, Rep. David Cicilline, a Democrat from Rhode Island and one of the impeachment managers, said Trump had mistakenly called Senator Mike Lee, a Republican from Utah, in an effort to contact Senator Tommy Tuberville. , Alabama Republican. In describing the call, which was detailed in reports, Mr. Cicilline stated that Mr. Lee had stood still while Mr. Trump asked Mr. Tuberville to object further to the certification of President Biden’s electoral votes.
While Mr. Cicilline was speaking, Mr. Lee could be seen writing furiously on a pad in large letters: “This is not what happened.” When the Democrats concluded their arguments for the day, Lee invoked an impeachment rule that allows senators to raise questions during the trial, including on the admissibility of evidence, and asked that statements about him be considered false.
Senator Patrick J. Leahy of Vermont, the president of the impeachment trial, considered the request out of order. Mr. Leahy, who consulted the Senate parliamentarian, pointed out a specific rule for this impeachment trial that allows House administrators to include elements in their oral allegations that were not in their original pre-trial presentations.
A visibly indignant Mr. Lee demanded an appeal.
“My goal was to attack them because they were fake,” he said.
As some lawmakers, including Senator Joe Manchin III, a Democrat from West Virginia, demanded that Lee explain why the description was false, the murmur and confusion between senators and officials temporarily hampered the final moments of the day’s proceedings.
After a series of intense meetings on the floor, where Mr. Lee can be heard insisting that he did not make these statements, Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Democrat from Maryland and the principal impeachment manager, agreed to withdraw the words. But he reserved the possibility to bring the matter up again and litigate it later in the trial.
“We are going to remove him tonight and without prejudice to the ability to resubmit him, if possible,” said Raskin. “We can debate if we need to. But it is not – this is a lot of noise for nothing, because it is not critical at all for our case. “
While Mr. Raskin was speaking, Mr. Lee could be heard across the Senate chamber making a sarcastic reply: “You are not the only one named as a witness, sir.”