Trump Is Guilty As Charged

FRED WERTHEIMER’S WEEKLY NOTE | JANUARY 9, 2020

“It is clear beyond a reasonable doubt that Trump is guilty as charged and unfit to serve as President.”

The Senate is likely to begin the impeachment trial of President Trump soon.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has prevailed with his partisan approach to establishing the rules for the trial.

McConnell is the major reason why the “greatest deliberative body” in the world doesn’t deliberate anything anymore.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, however, has also prevailed in focusing national attention on the unwillingness of the Senate Republicans to ensure that witnesses could be called.

Pelosi’s delay in sending the matter to the Senate has helped build the case that this is going to be a rigged trial. It also has left time for the new evidence that keeps surfacing.

Democrats will offer motions during the trial to call the witnesses they want. This will put some Republican Senators in the uncomfortable position of having to deny information that may be central to the trial.

Currently, no Republican Senator is expected to vote to remove Trump from office, and one or two Senate Democrats also may oppose removing Trump.

While the result of the Senate trial looks like a foregone conclusion, the impending false claims from Trump that he has been found innocent and that this is a partisan witch hunt will not overcome the overwhelming case made in the House that Trump engaged in gross abuse of his powers and obstructed Congress.

The facts are the facts here.

Notwithstanding McConnell’s irresponsible close coordination with the White House on the trial and his willingness to “take his cues” from White House lawyers, it is clear beyond a reasonable doubt that Trump is guilty as charged and unfit to serve as President.

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Fred Wertheimer is the Founder and President of Democracy 21, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works to strengthen our democracy and ensure the integrity and fairness of government decisions and elections. See previous Notes from Fred here.