Today marks an important day in American history as the US senate formally convened to consider the House’s articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump. The House impeached the president on Dec. 18, 2019, but did not release the documents to the Senate for nearly a month. However, the House officially handed them over for the Senate trial in the midst of problems with Iran and as new evidence comes to the surface. The Senate trial began with Rep. Adam B. Schiff, the lead house impeachment manager, started reading two articles charging him of abusing his office and obstructing Congress. Then, Chief Justice John Roberts and the nation’s senators were sworn in for the trial.
Republicans, who are in control of the Senate, have the opportunity to decide whether or not to call witnesses in the Senate trial against President Trump. Senate majority leader Mitch McConnel has dismissed talk of calling witnesses, but a few less-conservative Republicans have said that they are open to the idea. Democrats are demanding that the Republicans call witnesses, including John Bolton and White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney. The Democrats only need for GOP senators to vote with them in order to successfully call a witness for the trial.
In addition, new evidence for the trial has come to the surface. Lev Parnas, an associate of Rudy Giuliani offered corroborating details over investigations into former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden to benefit Trump in the next election. The documents that Parnas released say that Giuliani was acting with Trump’s permission to pursue information about the Bidens. Schiff claimed that the new evidence will put pressure onto Mitch Mcconnell to call witnesses in the trial.
The trial for President Trump’s impeachment will resume on Tuesday, January 21, 2020, due to the Senate observing Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The debate between the Democrats and Republicans over calling witnesses to the trial is bound to continue until an official decision is made.