Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham said he will not support calling any witnesses in the upcoming impeachment trial against President Trump, including witnesses Trump wants to summon.
“I’m going to tell the president, ‘no,’ to his witnesses request because I think what is best for the country is to get this behind us as soon as possible,” Graham, a South Carolina Republican, said Wednesday.
The House is set to impeach Trump Wednesday night on two articles charging him with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. The Senate will hold a trial in January, and Democrats and Republicans are battling over the proceedings.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, wants to subpoena four current and former Trump administration officials as well as documents related to Trump’s July 25 phone call with Ukraine’s president.
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, rejected Schumer’s witness list.
Some Republicans, including Trump, have proposed calling House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, a California Democrat, as well as Hunter Biden, who earned a lucrative job with a Ukrainian gas company while his father, 2020 Democratic front-runner Joe Biden, was vice president.
Graham said Hunter Biden’s gas company job may deserve investigation, but it should be examined elsewhere.
“I know a lot of people on the president’s team want to call Hunter Biden and Joe Biden,” Graham said. “And we can look at those accusations outside of impeachment.”
Schumer said he’s not sure whether he can find the four GOP votes that would be needed to reach the 51-vote threshold and subpoena the Democratic witness list.
Graham said he won’t vote for it.
“I’m not going to support witnesses being called by the president. I’m not going to support witnesses being called by Sen. Schumer,” Graham said. “We are going to vote on the same product the House used for a final vote, and I think most senators are ready to move forward at the appropriate time.”
Graham said he believes the Senate trial will include the House Democratic impeachment managers presenting their case, followed by a defense presented by Trump’s lawyers. Then, the Senate can vote without hearing from witnesses, Graham said.
“I don’t want a motion to dismiss,” Graham said. “I want a vote on the articles themselves.”
The president can be convicted with a minimum of 67 Senate votes. Democrats control 47 votes, and so far, no GOP senators have said they’ll vote to convict Trump.
“There is a desire by senators to get this chapter closed and move forward,” Graham said.
