GOP stands by Trump, gingerly, after diplomat’s testimony
WASHINGTON — They pleaded ignorance, saying they’d not read the diplomat’s damning statement. They condemned the Democrats’ tactics as unfair. They complained that the allegations against President Donald Trump rested on second- or third-hand evidence.
Wednesday was a day of careful counterargument by congressional Republicans, the day after America’s top envoy in Ukraine gave House impeachment investigators an explosive, detailed roadmap of Trump’s drive to squeeze that country’s leaders for damaging information about his Democratic political rivals.
Most Republicans were still standing by Trump but in delicately calibrated ways after Tuesday’s closed-door testimony by acting ambassador William Taylor. And as lawmakers struggled to balance support for Trump with uncertainty over what might still emerge, some were willing to acknowledge the strains they were facing.
Asked if Taylor’s testimony was a rough day for the White House and Republicans, No. 2 Senate GOP leader John Thune of South Dakota said, “Probably one of many.”
“Obviously, we have a lot of incoming right now,” Thune said. “That’s the nature of the beast.”
On Thursday, Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, one of Trump’s chief GOP allies, said he would introduce a resolution condemning the Democratic-controlled House for pursuing a “closed door, illegitimate impeachment inquiry.”
The nonbinding resolution gives Senate Republicans a chance to show support for Trump at a moment when Trump is urging his Republican allies to get tougher and fight harder for him.
White House officials, who have been treating unified Republican support for Trump as a given, have grown increasingly fearful of defections in a potential impeachment vote by the Democratic House and even in an eventual trial in the Republican Senate.
While officials don’t believe there will be enough votes to remove the Republican president, as Democrats hope, the West Wing believes more must be done to shore up party support to avoid embarrassment and genuine political peril.
Some Trump allies also believe the White House must directly address the increasingly troubling revelations. They note that as more Trump appointees offer disparaging information to Congress, he will have increasing difficulty arguing simply that he is the target of a new “witch hunt.”
Several of these concerned supporters spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the growing private worries.
White House officials said they have added a regular call with select GOP lawmakers to discuss impeachment strategy, plus more meetings with Republicans at the White House and Camp David. They said communications teams from the White House and Congress coordinate three times a week with phone calls.