Schiff, Nadler Slam Trump Team's Defense That 'Abuse Of Power' Isn't Impeachable
Two of the most prominent impeachment managers rejected arguments from Donald Trump’s defense team claiming the president shouldn’t have been impeached for abusing the power of his office.
In separate interviews on Sunday, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), the Intelligence Committee chairman and lead impeachment manager, and Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), the Judiciary Committee chairman, lambasted defenders of the president for arguing that the conduct at the heart of Trump’s impeachment isn’t impeachable. On Sunday, Schiff called their claims “absurdist.”
Over the past week, Trump’s defense team, which includes lawyer Alan Dershowitz, amplified its assertions that Trump’s demands for Ukraine to investigate his political rivals did not warrant impeachment.
In December, the House voted to impeach the president on two articles: abuse of power and obstructing the congressional investigation into the alleged abuse.
On Sunday, Dershowitz told the host of ABC’s “This Week,” George Stephonopoulos, that Trump should not have been impeached even if all the evidence and arguments laid out by the House are accepted as fact.
“The vote was to impeach on abuse of power ― which is not within the constitutional criteria for impeachment,” Dershowitz said. The claim rests on Dershowitz’s belief that abuse of power is not among the “high crimes and misdemeanors” for which a president can be impeached.
.@GStephanopoulos: "Is it your position that President Trump should not be impeached even if all the evidence and arguments laid out by the House are accepted as fact?"
Alan Dershowitz: "That's right." https://t.co/8PCqr913hSpic.twitter.com/HfDSNz4YDI— ABC News (@ABC) January 19, 2020
Dershowitz has frequently appeared on news broadcasts as one of Trump’s staunchest legal allies, arguing against oversight by Congress and against former Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian election interference.
“That’s the...
