Democratic House prosecutors argued in President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial Thursday that he was swept up by a “completely bogus” Ukraine theory pushed by attorney Rudy Giuliani that led to his abuse of presidential power and then impeachment.
As the Democrats pressed their case for a second day before skeptical Republican Senate jurors, they displayed video images of the nation’s top FBI and Homeland Security officials warning the public off the theory that it was Ukraine, not Russia, that interfered in the 2016 election.
It was just one of 10 separate ways, the prosecutors argued, that Trump abused power for his own personal political benefit ahead of the 2020 election — the first article of impeachment against him.
Watch day 4 of the trial
“That’s what Donald Trump wanted investigated or announced — this completely bogus Kremlin-pushed conspiracy theory,” said Rep. Adam Schiff, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee who is leading the prosecution.
Trump is accused of seeking the investigation — and probes of political foe Joe Biden and Biden’s son — while holding back congressionally approved military aid as leverage. Schiff said, “You can imagine what a danger that presents to this country.”
»READ: Best lines from President Trump’s impeachment trial ... so far
After the House prosecutors present their case, the president’s lawyers will follow with another 24 hours over three days. They are expected to take only Sunday off.
Then there will be 16 hours for senators to ask written questions, and another four hours for deliberations.
The U.S. Constitution requires a two-thirds majority in the Senate (or 67 senators) to convict in an impeachment trial.
Republicans hold 53 seats in the Senate, while Democrats hold 45. However, two Independents — including presidential candidate Bernie Sanders of Vermont — regularly caucus with Democrats, giving the nation’s blue party 47 votes.
If the Senate votes along party lines regarding impeachment — as did the House — 20 Republican senators would have to join Democrats in voting to remove the nation's 45th president from office.
The two articles of impeachment passed by House Democrats last month charge the nation’s 45th president with high crimes and misdemeanors.
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The first article of impeachment charges President Trump with abuse of power.
Democrats allege Trump “solicited the interference of a foreign government, Ukraine, in the 2020 U.S. presidential election. He did so through a scheme or course of conduct that included soliciting the government of Ukraine to publicly announce investigations that would benefit his reelection, harm the election prospects of a political opponent, and influence the 2020 U.S. president election to his advantage.”
The “election prospects of a political opponent” refer to former Vice President Joe Biden, currently the front-runner in the still-crowded field of Democratic White House hopefuls.
The president “also sought to pressure the government of Ukraine to take these steps by conditioning official U.S. government acts of significant value to Ukraine on its public announcement of investigations.”
Democrats argue the president “used the powers of his presidency in a manner that compromised the national security of the United States and undermined the integrity of the United States democratic process. He thus ignored and injured the interests of the nation.”
In the second article of impeachment, titled obstruction of Congress, Democrats charge Trump has defied House subpoenas as it has pursued its constitutional power of impeachment.
“As part of this impeachment inquiry, the committees undertaking this investigation served subpoenas seeking document and testimony deemed vital to the inquiry from various executive branch agencies and offices,” the articles read. “President Trump directed executive branch agencies, offices and officials not to comply with those subpoenas.
“These actions were consistent with President Trump’s previous efforts to undermine U.S. government investigations into foreign interference in United States elections.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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