Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Monday night that he thinks the impeachment trial for former President Donald Trump will move quickly and will not require a lot of witnesses.
“The trial will be done in a way that is fair but … relatively quickly,” Schumer said in an interview with MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, The Hill reported. “I don’t think there’s a need for a whole lot of witnesses,” Schumer continued, saying he believes the impeachment trial will be “fair,” adding that he would “not let the Republicans be dilatory.”
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) hold a press conference on President Trump’s 2021 Budget Request on February 11, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)
House impeachment managers, led by the House Clerk and the Acting House Sergeant at Arms, walked the article of impeachment against Trump to the Senate floor on Monday night. (RELATED: House Officially Presents Article Of Impeachment To The Senate)
Democratic Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy, who will preside over Trump’s impeachment trial in the Senate instead of Supreme Court Justice John Roberts, accepted the article from the impeachment managers.
In order to convict Trump in the Senate, Democrats will need 17 Republican senators to side with every Democrat.
Members are set to be sworn in for trial on Tuesday. The arguments will start the week of Feb. 8, Schumer announced.