Democrats could demand that the mountains of documents the administration refused to turn over to the House impeachment inquiry be admitted as evidence at the Senate trial. But McConnell presumably can’t argue that his own impeachment trial is illegitimate, rendering that excuse a dead letter. ADUnder that process, when House impeachment managers made requests for witnesses or other evidence, they were subject to a simple-majority Senate vote. If McConnell allowed such a vote, and it passed by simple majority, that process would structure the impeachment trial, Reynolds notes. ADSo Democrats might be able to try to negotiate a more open process with a handful of those vulnerable GOP Senators, Reynolds says.

Source: Washington Post December 13, 2019 21:08 UTC