(TheLibertyRevolution.com)- House impeachment managers are not going to get what they want easily.
The legal team for former President Donald Trump quickly responded to House Democrats Thursday, saying their client will not testify at his upcoming Senate impeachment trial. This will put the onus back on the Democrats if they want to try to issue a subpoena to Trump to try to force him to testify.
On Thursday, the lead impeachment manager, Representative Jamie Raskin, sent a letter to the former president’s legal team requesting he testify either during or before his impeachment trial. Raskin argued in the letter that they needed Trump’s testimony after the former president disputed allegations by the House that he incited the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol building.
Raskin, from Maryland, wrote in the letter:
“Two days ago, you filed an Answer in which denied many factual allegations set forth in the article of impeachment. You have thus attempted to put critical facts at issue notwithstanding the clear and overwhelming evidence of your constitutional offense.
“In light of your disputing these factual allegations, I write to invite you to provide testimony under oath, either before or during the Senate impeachment trial, concerning your conduct on January 6, 2021.”
Trump’s legal team didn’t bite, though. They remained composed, responding that the impeachment managers’ actions show they can’t prove the allegations they are leveling against him.
Two of the former president’s attorneys, David Schoen and Bruce Castor, wrote in response:
“The use of our Constitution to bring a purported impeachment proceeding is much too serious to try to play these games.”
In a separate statement, Jason Miller, an adviser for Trump, said:
“The President will not testify in an unconstitutional proceeding.”
Raskin declined to comment on whether Democrats would consider a subpoena to try to force Trump to testify before the Senate.
Democrats decided not to have Trump testify during his first impeachment trial. They did subpoena John Bolton, the former national security adviser. But that attempt failed after Republicans in the Senate voted to not have any witnesses testify in that trial.
It seems this is yet another move by progressive House Democrats to try to make a disgrace of the former president, even after he is no longer in office. Senators from both sides of the political aisle think it’s absurd to try to get Trump to testify. They are hoping for a speedy impeachment trial that is very likely going to end the same way the first one did — with an acquittal.
Moderate Democratic Senator Joe Manchin, from West Virginia, said having Trump testify would be a “dog and pony show.” Senator Chris Coons, a close ally of President Joe Biden since the two are from Delaware, said it was a “terrible idea.”
South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, meanwhile, said it wouldn’t be “in anybody’s interest” to have Trump testify at the trial. He said:
“It’s just a political showboat move to do this, and they didn’t call him in the House.”
