Schiff’s closing was geared toward the tiny band of Republican centrist or institutionalist senators that includes Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Mitt Romney of Utah. Democrats know a Trump conviction was virtually impossible, but landing even a single Republican vote of support on either of the House’s two articles of impeachment would help wipe away Trump’s talking points about a partisan impeachment process — especially after every Republican rejected the articles in the House.
And even if they fail to win a single vote — a prospect that became more likely as the day went on — the House’s impeachment managers used their closing arguments to try to make it as painful as possible for those few Republicans to toe the party line.
“Truth matters to you. Right matters to you. You are decent,” Schiff said, working to emphasize the fractures that have at times bubbled between Trump and these few GOP senators. “He is not who you are.”
Democrats also know they are at risk of losing a handful of senators from their own party, too. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Doug Jones of Alabama have all indicated that they are open to an acquittal, at least on one of the two impeachment charges. Sinema was taking notes on Monday as Trump’s lawyers offered their final pitch for a summary acquittal, accusing the House of a rushed and partisan process that did not support the charges as outlined in the articles.
Losing even one Democratic vote would arm Trump with a potent case that the effort to remove him garnered bipartisan opposition — one that Schiff and Speaker Nancy Pelosi are undoubtedly working to rebut with a claim of bipartisanship on their side, too.
“These types of impeachments must end,” said Pat Cipollone, the White House counsel and Trump’s top impeachment lawyer. “You will vindicate the right to vote. You’ll vindicate the Constitution. You’ll vindicate the rule of law by rejecting these, and I ask you to do that on a bipartisan basis this week and end the era of impeachment once and for all.”
Schiff, aware of the political consequences of losing just one Democratic vote, sought to isolate and drive up the pressure on those GOP senators who could at least conceivably break from their party — in particular the retiring Alexander.
Alexander, who said he is prepared to vote to acquit Trump, has nevertheless argued that the House proved its impeachment case — that Trump pressured Ukraine to investigate his political rivals and withheld military aid to drive up the pressure. But Alexander said such “inappropriate” conduct does not warrant Trump’s removal from office.
Schiff addressed that dynamic in his closing pitch.
“If you find that the House has proved its case and still vote to acquit, your name will be tied to his with a cord of steel and for all of history,” Schiff warned, causing Alexander to lean in and strike a more inquisitive look, raising his hand to his chin.
Schiff’s closing remarks resonated on the Democratic side of the aisle. A line of Democratic senators formed near the well of the Senate chamber, where Schiff had just sat down at the long desk reserved for the House’s impeachment managers and their staff, to shake his hand. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer gave Schiff a bear hug and slapped his back so loud that it sounded like someone had clapped inside the chamber.
Even Jay Sekulow, Trump’s lead personal attorney for the impeachment trial, shook hands with Schiff.
But it appeared unlikely on Monday that Schiff’s lofty closing remarks had resonated among those GOP senators. Alexander was already on-record opposing a vote to convict, and Murkowski announced later Monday that she, too, would vote to acquit the president.
“There won’t be bipartisan support for removal in the Senate,” said Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-Texas), one of Trump’s impeachment surrogates, moments after Schiff’s close.
It came long after Sekulow, along with Cipollone, had wrapped up their own closing arguments to senators. Their pitches, though, were made with the full knowledge that the president would prevail in the final vote.
Monday’s closing arguments in the nearly three-week impeachment trial were little more than a formality, given the Senate’s party-line decision Friday to shut down the pursuit of new witnesses or evidence to bolster the House’s case that Trump abused his power and obstructed the impeachment inquiry.
The Senate’s decision to not hear from new witnesses came in the face of newly emerging evidence that Trump conditioned $391 million in military aid to Ukraine as he pressed that country’s president to launch investigations of his political rivals.
Trump’s defense lawyers reiterated their view that the House impeachment managers did not meet their burden of proof — and that Trump’s impeachment was an effort to overturn the results of the 2016 election and to interfere in the 2020 campaign. They also played a montage of Democrats seeking Trump’s impeachment prior to the Ukraine scandal, arguing that the impeachment effort was really the playing out of a long-held desire of congressional Democrats.
Source: politico.com
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