Nancy Pelosi Says Donald Trump ‘Cannot Be Acquitted’ Without Witnesses
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi touched on the Senate impeachment trial of Donald Trump and the current battle over witnesses, Breitbart reports.
Pelosi, who echoed many other Democrats, claimed that calling witnesses must come before any potential acquittal of Trump.
“He will not be acquitted. He cannot be acquitted if you don’t have a trial. If you don’t have a trial, if you don’t have witnesses and documentation and that,” she said.
The 79-year-old politician then touched on the possible scenario of a tie vote and the path she hopes the Senate takes to move forward.
“I would hope that the senators, if it comes to a tie or if there’s a question of hearing testimony or receiving documents would leave it up to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Republican-appointed in a Republican Majority court. I would think that they would have confidence in the Chief Justice of the United States, that is really his title.”
As The Washington Times reported, Pelosi did not say whether the House would call Bolton in the absence of a Senate appearance. Instead, she said that she hopes and prays that Senators can “handle the truth” and hear from Bolton, as well as other witnesses connected to the alleged Ukraine pressure campaign.
Speaker Pelosi: "I'm also and very proud of our managers, they have been magnificent custodians of the Constitution, content, presentation, historic perspective and their tone, they have made us all proud." pic.twitter.com/LtjXFbD0Yz
— The Hill (@thehill) January 30, 2020
House Democrats previously suggested they were open to calling witnesses should the Senate decide to vote against hearing from them. Democratic Rep. Hank Johnson of the House Judiciary Committee said that the House would be interested in hearing from indicted former Rudy Giuliani associate Lev Parnas.
While Democratic Rep. Eliot Engel did not explicitly support calling witnesses in the House, he suggested that a lack of witnesses in the Senate will not be the end of the Democrats’ campaign to hear from them.
Democrats need four Republican votes to hear from witnesses. The reported information contained in former National Security Advisor John Bolton’s upcoming book, The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir, has been fueling a push to hear from more witnesses.
Sen. Mitt Romney claims he is interested in hearing from Bolton and has reportedly made a “strong push” to his GOP colleagues in a closed-door meeting; Sen. Susan Collins also said she is interested in hearing from witnesses. Conversely, others — like Sen. Cory Gardner — are ready to end the trial.
Senators are set to vote Friday on whether to extend the impeachment trial in favor of hearing from additional witnesses.
