WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial heads toward a historic conclusion this week, with senators all-but-certain to acquit him on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress after narrowly rejecting Democratic demands to summon witnesses.
There’s still plenty of drama to unfold before Wednesday’s vote.
The vote is expected to cap a months-long investigation spurred by a whistleblower complaint that Trump improperly withheld U.S. military aid from Ukraine in a bid to pressure it to launch investigations into 2020 Democratic rival Joe Biden.
In the Senate, Republicans hold a 53-47 advantage and there’s nowhere near the two-thirds needed for conviction and removal. On Friday, Republicans blocked consideration of new witnesses and documents, setting up the speedy acquittal vote for the coming week.
It will be a frenetic next few days.
House impeachment managers and Trump’s defense team return to the Senate floor today to make closing arguments in the trial, the same day the 2020 presidential election kicks off with the first votes cast in the Iowa caucuses.
On Tuesday, Trump will deliver his State of the Union address.
The trial resumes at 11 a.m. EST today for closing arguments by the two legal teams, with each side getting two hours. After the arguments, the Senate goes back into normal session to allow lawmakers to give speeches about impeachment on the floor from late Monday into Wednesday, before they reconvene as the impeachment court at 4 p.m. Wednesday and vote.
With Trump’s acquittal all but assured, one of the biggest questions may be whether any Democrats join with Republicans to clear him of charges.
There is strong political significance.
Three Democratic senators hailing from states where Trump remains popular — Doug Jones of Alabama, Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona — remained quiet over the weekend about their intentions.
They were among the 47 Democratic and independent senators who voted unsuccessfully to extend Trump’s trial by summoning additional witnesses.