The final vote is undefined, but the Senate is running to complete the trial in five days – unless Democratic impeachment managers seek witnesses. This could extend the trial beyond Saturday, although senators from both parties do not expect a witness to be called.
It is unclear what was decided, but it should be clear soon after the Senate hammers start the session at 10:00 ET.
Several aides said the debate was that witnesses could clarify the timeline of what Trump knew and when in a convincing way, but it is unclear whether the witnesses would change the minds of senators already dug over the verdict. Witnesses would also extend the trial considerably, with Senate Democrats eager to move forward on President Joe Biden’s agenda.
Democratic senators said Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer signaled to them on a phone call on Saturday morning that he did not know whether House Democrats were going to ask for witnesses.
“We were told a few minutes ago that we don’t know,” Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland told CNN.
Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a Democrat from Rhode Island, tweeted on Friday night that managers should depose McCarthy and Tuberville. Asked about it on Saturday, Whitehouse told reporters, “Well, it really isn’t my decision, so we’ll see what the Raskin team decides to do,” a reference to impeachment manager Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland.
A person familiar with Trump’s legal team strategy said that if Democrats seek witnesses, Trump’s legal team will try to call House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Washington, DC, Mayor Muriel Bowser. Of course, they would need 51 votes to summon witnesses, so that would not happen.
Managers have repeatedly refused to say whether they will seek witnesses, although most senators do not expect them to do so. “No comment. No comment,” said Raskin as he left the Capitol on Friday night.
If there are no witnesses, impeachment managers and Trump’s lawyers will make final arguments of up to two hours each before the Senate goes to a final vote, which can be held at 3 pm ET, although it is not yet finalized. It is not yet clear whether senators will seek to make speeches to explain their votes after the legal teams have completed.
The result of the final vote was already wired earlier in the week, when the Senate voted 56 to 44 that the impeachment trial was constitutional. Republican Party senators who voted for a former president’s trial were unconstitutional said it would determine their final vote, leaving the Senate well below the two-thirds – or 17 Republican Party senators who would have to join all 50 Democrats – necessary by conviction.
Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell told his colleagues Saturday morning that he would vote for Trump’s acquittal, according to a source familiar with the talks. McConnell plans to explain his decision after the final vote.
The six Republicans who voted the trial was constitutional are the Republican Party senators who left open the possibility of voting that the former president is guilty after 10 House Republicans joined Democrats for Trump’s impeachment in the House this month. past. Several of these Republican senators – Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana – lobbied Trump’s lawyers during the Senate question and answer session on Friday about the actions Trump took when heard about the riots unfolding and tweeted that then Vice President Mike Pence was out of courage while he was being evacuated from the Senate.
House managers argued during the trial that Trump should be convicted and prevented from holding a future position because he was responsible for the rioters who attacked the United States Capitol on January 6 and put the lives of lawmakers and Pence at risk. They argued that Trump had stirred up troublemakers for months of false claims that the election was being stolen from him, and then took no action to stop the violence or condemn the troublemakers.
The defense team offered their rebuttal on Friday in a brief presentation, in which they sought to match Trump’s rhetoric with that of Democrats, arguing that political rhetoric is protected by the First Amendment and Trump’s language did not incite a riot that was pre-planned.
This story and headline were updated with further developments on Saturday.
