Chief justice, senators sworn in as Senate begins historic impeachment trial of Trump
WASHINGTON – The Senate on Thursday formally convened to begin considering articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump in the third impeachment trial in American history.
Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and the entire Senate were sworn in, promising to apply “impartial justice” as they consider over at least the next two weeks whether the two articles approved by the House in December warrant removing the president from office.
After the brief Senate session, lawmakers left with plans to begin the trial in earnest on Tuesday. From then on, the Senate is required to meet each day – Monday through Saturday – at 1 p.m. Eastern time to hear the case. The first major hurdle next week is expected to be passage of a set of rules governing how the trial is conducted, including the divisive question of whether to make an upfront commitment to hear from witnesses, or to delay that decision until after arguments.
The proceeding got underway hours after a nonpartisan government watchdog agency said the Trump administration had violated federal law by withholding congressionally approved aid to Ukraine last summer – an action at the heart of the impeachment.
The law “does not permit the president to substitute his own policy priorities for those that Congress has enacted into law,” the Government Accountability Office said in a report issued Thursday morning. The agency report says the president “is not vested with the power to ignore or amend” any laws enacted by Congress.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen,
D-MD., called the report a “bombshell legal opinion” that “demonstrates, without a doubt, that the Trump administration illegally withheld security assistance from Ukraine.”
The House impeached the president last month on charges of abusing his office and obstructing Congress’ investigation, arguing that he withheld about $400 million in aid and a White House meeting with Trump in hopes of getting Ukraine’s president to announce an investigation into his political rival, former Vice President Joe Biden, and Biden’s son.
Republicans stressed that the GAO report said the administration’s Office of Management and Budget, not the president, broke the law. The office, known as OMB, is within the executive office of the president.
“I think we’re going to hear some more about it,” said Sen. John Cornyn, RTexas, “but I don’t think that changes anything.”
At midday Thursday, seven House members walked across the Capitol to serve as de facto prosecutors: Reps. Adam B. Schiff and
Zoe Lofgren of California, Jerrold Nadler and Hakeem Jeffries of New York, Jason Crow of Colorado, Sylvia Garcia of Texas and Val Demings of Florida.
After the ceremonial walk, Schiff read the articles in front of the full Senate, with members of both parties watching from their assigned desks. Under the rules, senators are not allowed to speak during the trial, and their phones and other electronics must be kept outside the chamber.
As Schiff spoke, some senators – including Sen. Kamala Harris of California – scribbled rapidly on notepads, while others sat with their fingers steepled or their hands clasped in their laps. Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California sat stiffly, her arms crossed. About 140 people watched from the gallery, including several House staff members who worked on the impeachment investigation.
The proceedings got underway amid dramatically heightened security on Capitol Hill. Reporters who can normally roam much of the Capitol to speak with senators were kept behind rope barriers, changes imposed by the Senate sergeant-atarms and Senate Republican leadership that will make it much easier for lawmakers to escape being questioned by the media.
Sixty-seven votes are required to convict the president and remove him from office. No Senate Republican has indicated publicly that they’re apt to join Senate Democrats in voting to convict.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian police announced Thursday that they had opened an investigation into allegations that former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch came under illegal surveillance by Trump loyalists before she was recalled from her post last year.
The announcement followed the release by Democrats of documents showing Lev Parnas, an indicted associate of Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudolph W. Giuliani, communicating about her movements. Parnas has said Trump and Giuliani were both aware of his activities.