Former President Trump’s lawyers on Monday presented a document saying that the Democrats’ attempt to convict the president in an impeachment trial after he stepped down is a “political theater” and that the trial is outside constitutional authority of the Senate.
“Instead of taking action to heal the nation, or at least focus on prosecuting the offenders who invaded the Capitol, the mayor and his allies cruelly tried to control the chaos of the moment for their own political gain,” he says, according to with the Associated Press.
The report also echoes the arguments presented in the Trump team’s initial response to the impeachment article that Trump’s false claims that the election was stolen were within his First Amendment rights.
President Donald Trump reacts after speaking near a section of the US-Mexico border wall, Tuesday, January 12, 2021, in Alamo, Texas. Trump is the only American president to face two charges. (AP Photo / Alex Brandon)
The petition arrives a day before the trial begins in earnest, with arguments about its likely constitutionality, and President Pro Tempore Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., Is due to chair.
IMPEACHMENT TRUMP CONVICTION? ‘ZERO CHANCE, THE REPUBLICANS SAY, AS DEMS ADVANCES THE CASE
The House’s impeachment managers, led by Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., Are also expected to file a petition on Monday morning.
The records of the Trump team and Democrats seeking to secure the former president’s sentencing will provide a preview of the arguments they plan to present during the trial hearings.
The Senate has yet to officially agree on a structure for the trial. But a potential is currently circulating, which would allow for four hours of debate on Tuesday on whether the trial is constitutional, followed by a vote on “Constitutionality”.
There could also be a debate and a vote on calling witnesses by impeachment administrators. And the assessment may change from the traditional model from six days a week off on Sunday to six days a week off on Saturday. Trump’s attorney David Schoen observes the Jewish Sabbath and asked that the trial be stopped on Friday at 5 pm and restarted on Sunday.
This is a developing story. Please check again for updates.
Chad Pergram and The Associated Press of Fox News contributed to this report.