Published 12:14 IST, February 5th 2021
Trump will refuse to testify voluntarily at 'unconstitutional' Senate impeachment trial
Former US President Donald Trump’s legal team has said that he “will not testify” voluntarily under the oath at his impeachment trial in the Senate next week.
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Former US President Donald Trump’s legal team has said that he “will not testify” voluntarily under the oath at his impeachment trial in the Senate scheduled for next week. House Democrats have charged the former Republican leader that he incited the insurrection at the US Capitol on January 6 that even claimed the life of at least five people including one police officer. Just after hours after Democrat Jamie Raskin, who is the lead House impeachment manager wrote to Trump asking for him to testify under oath, Trump’s adviser Jason Miller said that the 45th US President will refuse to do the same.
Miller dismissed the second historic impeachment proceedings against Trump as “unconstitutional”. Former US President’s lawyers rejected the request as a “public relations stunt”. The request from House impeachment managers does not require Trump to appear, however, the Senate can still later force a subpoena while warning that any refusal to testify could be used at trial to support the conviction.
Raskin wrote in a letter made public on February 4 to Trump, “You denied many factual allegations set forth in the article of impeachment. You have thus attempted to put critical facts at issue.” The Democrat had also written that if Trump refused to do so, an adverse inference would be made from his denial.
Trump lawyers say ‘no such thing as negative inference’
As per the New York Post report, Trump’s lawyers Bruce Castor and David Schoen in a reply to Raskin wrote, “We are in receipt of your latest public relations stunt. As you certainly know, there is no such thing as a negative interference in this unconstitutional proceeding. Your letter only confirms what is known to everyone: you cannot prove your allegations against the 45th President of the United States, who is now a private citizen.”
“The use of our Constitution to bring a purported impeachment proceeding is much too serious to try to play these games,” they added even as the impeachment managers accused Trump of being “singularly responsible” for the shocking US Capitol siege last month. The House had impeached Trump soon after the deadly attack on the federal building, making him the only US President in history to be impeached twice.
Updated 12:12 IST, February 5th 2021