U.S. House of Representatives holds election certification session on January 6, 2021
The U.S. Senate’s second impeachment case against former President Trump will begin on Tuesday, February 9, and although the impeachment case has not gained enough support in the Senate, Democrats are still insisting on the importance of the case and trying to link Trump to the state of affairs on January 6 when protesters stormed Congress. In response, the Trump impeachment defense team has also announced that they will provide sufficient rebuttal evidence to prove that the former president, who is an ordinary citizen, should not be tried. For reference, this article will talk about the possible state of affairs after the impeachment case begins in Congress in order to flow.
According to the constitutional process, once impeachment reaches the Senate stage, senators are required to conduct a trial hearing on the presidential impeachment case filed by the House of Representatives, which will involve one or more charges. The House has appointed nine Trump impeachment managers who will present the case against Trump in the Senate. Trump’s defense team will have equal Time to oppose a conviction.
The chief justice of the U.S. high court usually presides over presidential impeachment trials, but Trump is not currently a sitting president, which has led to controversy over the presiding officer’s selection. After discussions, Senate President Pro Tempore Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), who is currently the longest-serving official in the Senate, will preside over the impeachment.
Once senators reach a final vote on the impeachment charges (an opportunity that will only happen once), each member will stand up and vote. A vote in favor of more than two-thirds of the senators present will result in a conviction being upheld. This percentage is said to be difficult to reach, as 45 Senate Republicans refused to support Trump’s impeachment in a previous test vote in the Senate, which was approved resulting in the impeachment not ultimately receiving more than a two-thirds majority support.
According to Senate leaders’ agreement on Monday (Feb. 8), the prosecution and the defense will be allowed to debate for up to 16 hours starting Wednesday (10), with no more than eight hours of debate per day. Later, there will be time for senators to ask questions and there may be other procedural votes.
The agreement states that the trial will have four hours of arguments on Tuesday to discuss the constitutionality of the trial. The Senate will then vote on whether to drop the charges against Trump. If the charges cannot be dropped, the House impeachment manager will begin debate on Wednesday and continue through Thursday (Feb. 11).
Trump lawyers will likely begin debate on Friday (12), meaning the final vote on impeachment will not take place until next week. If Democrats request to call witnesses, it could result in a longer impeachment hearing. No such request has been made yet.
The Associated Press commented that while Democrats want to make sure they have enough time to make their case, they don’t want to take up the Senate’s time. The Senate cannot confirm Biden‘s cabinet nominees until the trial is completed and legislative priorities, including outbreak relief, continue to advance.
Witness attendance at the hearing is expected to be difficult, following calls from Democrats for Trump himself to attend the hearing, which Trump’s aides declined, citing the reason that “the president will not testify in an unconstitutional proceeding.
If the impeachment manager does decide to call witnesses, a further vote will be required. The Senate would have to approve provisions to call any witnesses to trial.
In the first impeachment case against Trump in 2020, many Trump Administration officials refused to appear as subpoenaed, resulting in the absence of witnesses. The first impeachment failed to garner enough support and Trump was ultimately acquitted.
Trump’s lawyers say they believe the trial was unconstitutional, that Trump did nothing wrong on Jan. 6 and did not incite a riot in his speech to supporters that day.
In brief documents filed Monday, they noted that the rioters’ actions that day were spontaneous and that Trump was simply exercising his First Amendment rights by issuing the speech, a definition often used in political speeches. Lawyers blasted Democrats for impeaching Trump as “self-serving” and seeking only political gain.
The industry believes that because most Republicans refuse to support impeachment, Trump may be ushered in a second acquittal in the Senate, which would be a victory for Trump and a reflection of his enormous influence in the Republican Party.
Some Democrats have said they will not stop pursuing Trump because of the not guilty verdict in the impeachment case. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) said that while they have not yet determined whether they will urge a censure vote after the impeachment, “the idea is on the table and could be a useful one.”
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