Ron Johnson
Ronald (Ron) Harold JohnsonGraham requests State Department documents on Bidens, Ukraine House GOP wants Senate Republicans to do more on impeachment Sondland testifies quid pro quo in Ukraine was real and widely known MORE (R-Wis.) said on Friday that he opposes quickly dismissing any articles of impeachment againstPresident Trump
Donald John TrumpWatergate prosecutor says that Sondland testimony was ‘tipping point’ for Trump In private moment with Trump, Justice Kennedy pushed for Kavanaugh Supreme Court nomination: book Obama: ‘Everybody needs to chill out’ about differences between 2020 candidates MORE and predicted the Senate would hold a trial.
“I know outside pundits are just bringing up, dismiss this thing out of hand and move on, but at the same time that would not afford President Trump the ability to really defend himself. So I think consensus view point literally is we’ll take it up in the Senate,” Johnson told KHOW, a Colorado radio station.
Johnson predicted that any articles of impeachment sent over by the House would be “incredibly flawed” and that in Senate proceedings House managers and Trump’s team would make their case.
“I don’t think we should ever just bring up a motion to dismiss. I think if at some point in time if we’ve heard enough, if we’ve really got the votes, we should bring up a motion to vote. Let’s actually vote on the articles of impeachment and then dispense with it that way,” Johnson continued.
Johnson’s interview comes after he and several other GOP senators met with White House aides on Thursday and discussed impeachment trial strategy.
Though some Republican senators have floated quickly dismissing any articles of impeachment, Senate Majority Leader
Mitch McConnell
Addison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellOvernight Defense — Presented by Boeing — Deal on defense bill proves elusive | Hill, Holmes offer damaging testimony | Trump vows to block Navy from ousting officer from SEALs Trump steps up GOP charm offensive as impeachment looms Congressional authority in a time of Trump executive overreach MORE (R-Ky.)
shot that down earlier this month, saying “the rules of impeachment are very clear, we’ll have to have a trial.”
Trump also said in an interview on Friday morning with “Fox & Friends” that he wants the Senate to hold a trial if the House sends over articles of impeachment.
“I want a trial,” he
said. “There’s nothing there.”
House Democrats are weeks into their investigation into whether Trump tied Ukraine aid to the country opening up an investigation into former Vice President Biden and his son Hunter Biden.
He added that it would be “totally appropriate” for Trump’s team to try to call the whistleblower at the center of the House impeachment inquiry as a witness.
“I think certainly President Trump ought to have that capability,” Johnson said. “If the president wants to call the whistleblower I think that’s totally appropriate.”