President Donald Trump reversed the course and suggested the Senate should dismiss the charges against him without hearing any evidence. The new move came within hours of demanding the U.S Senate call house speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Intelligence Committee chair Adam Schiff as witnesses at his upcoming impeachment trial. Trump earlier said Pelosi and Schiff must testify at his trial. On Sunday afternoon, the president Trump tweeted, “Many believe that by the Senate giving credence to a trial based on the no evidence, no crime, read the transcripts, ‘no pressure’ Impeachment Hoax, rather than an outright dismissal, it gives the partisan Democrat Witch Hunt credibility that it otherwise does not have”. Point to be noted that Senate rules don’t currently allow for the dismissal articles of impeachment prior to a trial.
Some Republican Senators have signed on to support a measure introduced by Missouri’s Josh Hawley. It would amend the law to allow such a move. Last month, Trump became the 3rd American President to face a Senate impeachment trial when the House of Representatives voted on 18 December to approve 2 impeachment articles against him. It is noteworthy that 229 Democrats and a Michigan Republican Justin Amash voted to charge Trump with abusing his power over the withholding $391 million in military aid in a deal to force Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky to launch investigations into the family of his political rival Joe Biden.
They also voted to approve a 2nd impeachment article against Trump for obstructing a congressional investigation. Trump and his allies have seized on this fact to cast doubt on the legitimacy of the entire proceedings. Most reputable legal scholars have dismissed such arguments as being without merit. Pelosi has stalled on appointing the managers to transmit the impeachment articles into the Senate and prosecute Trump at his trial. Pelosi informed reporters she and her leadership team will wait to see what they are going to do on the Senate floor. She referenced a statement made by Mitch McConnell, he said, he would be coordinating the conduct of Trump’s trial with the White House counsel’s office.