Trump lawyers call impeachment trial unconstitutional in laying out defense
Lawyers representing former
President Trump on Tuesday detailed the defense they’ll lay out at next week’s impeachment trial, arguing that it is unconstitutional to impeach a former president and that Trump’s speech did not directly lead to the deadly siege on the U.S. Capitol building on Jan. 6. The filing from Trump’s attorneys David Schoen and Bruce Castor is in response to the article of impeachment passed last month by the House accusing Trump of “incitement of insurrection against the Republic he swore to protect.”
“It is denied that the 45the president of the United States ever engaged in a violation of his oath of office,” the defense attorneys wrote. “To the contrary, at all times Donald J. Trump fully and faithfully executed his duties as the president of the United States and at all times acted to the best of his ability to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States while never engaging in any high crimes or misdemeanors.” The briefing also argues that the Senate has no jurisdiction to impeach Trump since he is out of office. “The constitutional provision requires that a person actually hold office to be impeached,” Trump’s lawyers wrote.
Earlier on Tuesday, House Democrats outlined the case they intend to make against Trump, drawing a direct line from the president’s speech to a group of his supporters in Washington to the violent mob that later led the violent assault on the Capitol. The Democrats said Trump’s speech pointed a “loaded cannon” at the Capitol building and that his behavior “requires” he be convicted and barred from ever holding office again.
“President Trump’s conduct must be declared unacceptable in the clearest and most unequivocal terms,” the Democratic brief states. “This is not a partisan matter. His actions directly threatened the very foundation on which all other political debates and disagreements unfold. They also threatened the constitutional system that protects the fundamental freedoms we cherish.”
Democrats insist they have jurisdiction to impeach Trump again, saying the Constitution “vests the Senate with full jurisdiction to hear any valid impeachment case brought by the House for high crimes and misdemeanors.” In his rally speech on Jan. 6, Trump ticked through a litany of false or unproven claims about how the Democrats stole the election from him. In the brief, Trump’s lawyers denied that he made false election claims, stating that state election laws that were changed amid the pandemic justify some of his claims that the election was rigged against him.
"Insufficient evidence exists upon which a reasonable jurist could conclude that the 45th President’s statements were accurate or not, and he therefore denies they were false,” Trump’s lawyers wrote. The former president urged his supporters to march on the Capitol to protest the Electoral College vote that was going on, though Trump’s attorneys insist his rhetoric was peaceful and that he did not directly call for any illegal activity.
The rioters killed a police officer, vandalized the Capitol and terrorized lawmakers, sending them into hiding and fearing for their lives. As the mayhem developed and Vice President Pence sought refuge, Trump tweeted his anger at Pence for not stopping the vote count. Hours later, Trump called for calm but also praised the rioters as “very special” people.” The Democratic impeachment managers accused Trump of violating his oath of office, attacking the democratic process, imperiling Congress and undermining national security.
“The Nation will indeed remember January 6, 2021—and President Trump’s singular responsibility for that tragedy,” they wrote. “It is impossible to imagine the events of January 6 occurring without President Trump creating a powder keg, striking a match, and then seeking personal advantage from the ensuing havoc.”
Lawyers representing former President Trump on Tuesday detailed the defense they’ll lay out at next week’s impeachment trial, arguing that it is unconstitutional to impeach a former president and t…
thehill.com
