Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) announced Thursday evening that she will support a motion to allow additional witnesses to be heard in the Senate’s impeachment trial of President Donald Trump.
“I believe hearing from certain witnesses would give each side the opportunity to more fully and fairly make their case, resolve any ambiguities, and provide additional clarity. Therefore, I will vote in support of the motion to allow witnesses and documents to be subpoenaed,” Collins, who faces a tough re-election battle, said in a statement.
FBI hunts Michigan woman accused of stealing nearly $30M while posing as aircraft heiress
Jasmine Crockett uses Trump’s ‘Low IQ’ insults to launch her Texas Senate campaign in debut ad
Trump cabinet members do pull-ups at airport to launch $1B family travel program nationwide
Trump threatens 5% tariff on Mexico over water treaty violations affecting Texas farmers
Thune eyes possibility of ‘serious’ Obamacare talks once Democratic bill fails
Watch: Is This Is a Touchdown? ‘Clear As Mud’ Rules Trigger NFL Controversy
Top GOP senator says Crockett announcement exposes how ‘radical’ Dems are nationwide
Indiana redistricting bill clears committee in victory for Trump, heading to full Senate vote
Family sues Royal Caribbean after man allegedly served 33 drinks dies aboard cruise ship
DeSantis Drops the Hammer on Muslim Brotherhood, CAIR: ‘EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY’
Kelsey Grammer Defies All of Hollywood, Goes on Record with Glowing Review of Trump
Watch: Jasmine Crockett’s Utterly Bizarre Campaign Kickoff Video Is Nothing but Trump Insulting Her Non-Stop for 45 Seconds
Florida mom says teens ‘lured’ 14-year-old daughter into woods before shooting, setting her on fire: report
Trump complains he can’t ‘appoint anybody’ after Habba resigns as acting US attorney
Hollywood star reveals what he thinks of potential Newsom presidency with two-word response
I will vote in support of the motion to allow witnesses and documents to be subpoenaed. My full statement: https://t.co/VuhZv6CO5e pic.twitter.com/LhQlnvPaoc
— Sen. Susan Collins (@SenatorCollins) January 31, 2020
“If this motion passes, I believe that the most sensible way to proceed would be for the House Managers and the President’s attorneys to attempt to agree on a limited and equal number of witnesses for each side. If they can’t agree, then the Senate could choose the number of witnesses,” the senator added.
Collins’ announcement came moments before the lengthy statement of fellow moderate Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), who announced that he will join the overwhelming majority of his colleagues to vote against calling additional witnesses.
“I worked with other senators to make sure that we have the right to ask for more documents and witnesses, but there is no need for more evidence to prove something that has already been proven and that does not meet the United States Constitution’s high bar for an impeachable offense,” the retiring Tennessee Republican said.
FBI hunts Michigan woman accused of stealing nearly $30M while posing as aircraft heiress
Jasmine Crockett uses Trump’s ‘Low IQ’ insults to launch her Texas Senate campaign in debut ad
Trump cabinet members do pull-ups at airport to launch $1B family travel program nationwide
Trump threatens 5% tariff on Mexico over water treaty violations affecting Texas farmers
Thune eyes possibility of ‘serious’ Obamacare talks once Democratic bill fails
Watch: Is This Is a Touchdown? ‘Clear As Mud’ Rules Trigger NFL Controversy
Top GOP senator says Crockett announcement exposes how ‘radical’ Dems are nationwide
Indiana redistricting bill clears committee in victory for Trump, heading to full Senate vote
Family sues Royal Caribbean after man allegedly served 33 drinks dies aboard cruise ship
DeSantis Drops the Hammer on Muslim Brotherhood, CAIR: ‘EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY’
Kelsey Grammer Defies All of Hollywood, Goes on Record with Glowing Review of Trump
Watch: Jasmine Crockett’s Utterly Bizarre Campaign Kickoff Video Is Nothing but Trump Insulting Her Non-Stop for 45 Seconds
Florida mom says teens ‘lured’ 14-year-old daughter into woods before shooting, setting her on fire: report
Trump complains he can’t ‘appoint anybody’ after Habba resigns as acting US attorney
Hollywood star reveals what he thinks of potential Newsom presidency with two-word response
“There is no need for more evidence to conclude that the president withheld United States aid, at least in part, to pressure Ukraine to investigate the Bidens; the House managers have proved this with what they call a ‘mountain of overwhelming evidence,’ he added. “There is no need to consider further the frivolous second article of impeachment that would remove the president for asserting his constitutional prerogative to protect confidential conversations with his close advisers.”
Alexander’s decision indicates that the Senate will likely fail to meet the 51-vote threshold needed to subpoena more witnesses on Friday’s blanket up-or-down vote, signaling that the trial could draw to a close in the coming days.
Speaking to reporters earlier Thursday, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said that he is “increasingly optimistic” that Republicans “will move to a final verdict” before Tuesday and the president’s acquittal will be “in a bipartisan manner.”
“I’m increasingly optimistic that Republicans will move to a final verdict before Tuesday. The president will be acquitted in a bipartisan manner,” Graham, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said. We’re not blocking anybody’s witnesses. We’re just not going to legitimize the House choosing not to call a witness, dump it in our lap, and put us in a spot where if you call the witness, you’d be bailing the courts out of judicial review of impeachment.”
Story cited here.
