Fact check: The senator and Trump’s misdialed phone call

WASHINGTON — Donald Trump’s Senate impeachment trial hit a snag when Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah objected to how Democrats characterized a phone call from the president when the Capitol insurrection was raging.

After exchanges over the matter that seemed to confuse everyone, the Democratic House impeachment managers agreed to strike their words from the record and move on. They said the episode was not vital to their case that Trump incited the mob Jan. 6. But their account Wednesday night was correct to begin with.

Rep. DAVID CICILLINE of Rhode Island, an impeachment prosecutor: “Sen. Lee describes it. He had just ended a prayer with his colleagues here in the Senate chamber, and the phone rang. It was Donald Trump. And how Sen. Lee explains it is that the phone call goes something like this. ‘Hey, Tommy,’ Trump asks. And Sen. Lee says, ‘This isn’t Tommy.’ And he hands the phone to Sen. Tuberville. Sen. Lee then confirmed that he stood by as Sen. Tuberville and President Trump spoke on the phone. And on that call, Donald Trump reportedly asked Sen. Tuberville to make additional objections to the certification process. That’s why he called.”

LEE, asking that remarks about the phone call be removed from the record of the proceedings: “Statements were attributed to me moments ago by the House impeachment managers (that) were not made by me, they’re not accurate.” He added: “They are not true. I never made those statements.”

THE FACTS: By his own admission, Lee made the statements directly attributed to him. He did not publicly characterize what was said on the phone call — but Democrats did not claim that he had done so.