Republicans: Time for White House to make its case

Senate Minority leader Chuck Schumer says Democratic House Managers, wrapping up their opening arguments in President Donald Trump's impeachment trial, "decimates Trump and the Republicans argument," against their obstruction charges.

The president is being tried in the Senate after the House impeached him last month, accusing him of abusing his office by asking Ukraine to probe the Bidens while withholding military aid from a U.S. ally at war with Russia. The second article of impeachment accuses Trump of obstructing Congress by refusing to turn over documents or allow officials to testify in the House probe.

Senate Republicans say they are looking forward to the president's legal counsel starting their defense Saturday."I'm looking forward to the White House tomorrow, starting to set the record straight, too, because this has just been partisan," said Florida Republican Rick Scott.

Both Schumer, and Trump lawyer Jay Sekulow were asked about reports that Trump can be heard in a taped 2018 conversation saying he wants to get rid of the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, whose removal a year later emerged as an issue in Trump's impeachment.The president was talking with a small group that included Lev Parnas, an associate of his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, according to a report Friday about the audio recording.

Trump demanded the removal of Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch at an April 2018 dinner at his hotel in Washington, according to ABC News, which reported on the recording. The recording appears to contradict the president's statements that he did not know Parnas, a key figure in the investigation.

ABC said a speaker who appears to be Trump says on the recording, "Get rid of her! Get her out tomorrow. I don't care. Get her out tomorrow. Take her out. OK? Do it.""As long as it's verified, this is the kind of despicable conduct that the president engages in, the despicable kind of conduct," Schumer told reporters.

"Look, there is a ambassador serves at the pleasure of the president," Trump attorney Sekulow said."You know, who said that? The ambassador herself," he said.The White House denied any suggestion of presidential wrongdoing.

Yovanovitch, who was viewed as an obstacle to probes into Biden and his son, Hunter, was not recalled from her position until the following April.She said the decision was based on "unfounded and false claims by people with clearly questionable motives" that she was disloyal to Trump.

(Image Credit: AP)