Senators predicted former President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial could wrap by Saturday, far sooner than initially predicted, and a sign that Democrats who run the chamber are eager to move on to the party’s legislative priorities.
The prediction for a Saturday end to the trial came after Trump’s lawyers signaled they might only use one of two days provided to present their defense of the former president. If the trial concludes Saturday, it will be in record time. Trump’s 2020 impeachment trial lasted three weeks. President Bill Clinton’s impeachment trial lasted five weeks.
Defense lawyers are scheduled to make their case Friday.
“If they rest tomorrow, I think it will finish on Saturday unless there’s witnesses,” Sen. Ben Cardin, a Maryland Democrat, said during a break in the trial Thursday.
Democratic leaders are likely to oppose a vote to call witnesses, in part because it will almost certainly lead to Trump’s defense team calling their own witnesses and extending the trial for days, if not longer.
Democrats want the Senate floor available for confirming President Biden’s Cabinet nominees and to debate and pass his top legislative priority, a new round of Coronavirus aid worth $1.9 trillion.
Senators sitting in the chamber appeared tired as the third day of the trial dragged on, and more than a dozen seats were empty at one point.
The presentation, while riveting at times, seemed by Thursday to be doing little to convince many Republicans to convict Trump on charges he incited an insurrection ahead of the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.
“It’s just redundancy, the same thing over and over again,” Sen. James Inhofe, an Oklahoma Republican, said. “To me, the more you hear it, the less credibility.”
House Democratic impeachment managers will wrap up their presentation Thursday. Their two-day presentation and opening statement on Tuesday included dramatic and disturbing video of the mob attack on the Capitol, including new security and police body camera footage.
Trump defense lawyers Bruce Castor and David Schoen will begin the defense on Friday and have up to 16 hours, over two days, but may finish on Friday.
After that, lawmakers will vote on whether to call witnesses and will have two hours to ask questions before deliberating and voting on whether to convict the former president.
Democrats said the nine House impeachment managers will lead the decision about whether to call witnesses, which the Senate would have to vote on and approve.
Democrats suggested Thursday they may have seen enough.
“There have been a lot of witnesses, statements that have been taken,” Sen. Richard Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, said. “I’ll leave it up to the House managers.”
