Senate to juggle Trump impeachment trial, Biden agenda

The trial is set to overlap with the beginning of Joe Biden’s term as president, complicating the already-busy agenda that Democrats plan to tackle in coming weeks, though the exact timing will depend on when House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) formally sends over the article of impeachment.

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A person familiar with Democratic leadership discussions in Congress said that, barring further provocations from Mr. Trump, the party might hold on to the article for some time, allowing more evidence to accumulate and giving Mr. Biden full access to the Senate schedule early in his term. Before last year’s trial, Mrs. Pelosi held on to the two articles of impeachment for several weeks.

But others have said Democrats should move forward with the process soon, arguing that the Senate could handle both the impeachment trial and other matters simultaneously.

Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the Senate’s No. 2 Democrat, said on NBC News on Thursday that he didn’t know when the Senate would start the trial. A spokesman for Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) said, “We are working with Republicans to try to find a path forward,"

Sen. Chris Coons (D., Del.), a close ally of Mr. Biden, said on CNN that he didn’t have a clear picture on the timing of a trial. He said that Democrats are weighing the merits of moving ahead with a vote quickly, based on the record so far, or taking time to hold a deeper investigation. That tension is “part of the things that are being discussed between my colleagues now," he said.

The Senate won’t return to Washington until Jan. 19, the day before Mr. Biden’s inauguration, after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) rebuffed a Democratic push to reconvene immediately and begin the trial in the wake of the impeachment of Mr. Trump on Wednesday. While Mr. McConnell has signaled that he is open to convicting Mr. Trump for his statements before last week’s attack on the Capitol, he said the trial wouldn’t conclude until after Mr. Biden’s term starts.

“Even if the Senate process were to begin this week and move promptly, no final verdict would be reached until after President Trump had left office," Mr. McConnell said Wednesday.

An impeachment trial for the outgoing president at the beginning of Mr. Biden’s term would create a logistical challenge for Democrats, who are to take control of the Senate and seek to confirm Mr. Biden’s nominees quickly and pass another coronavirus relief bill. Last year’s trial in the first impeachment of Mr. Trump took several weeks, requiring senators to sit at their desks on the chamber’s floor, often until late into the night.

“I hope that the Senate leadership will find a way to deal with their constitutional responsibilities on impeachment while also working on the other urgent business of this nation," Mr. Biden said Wednesday.

A planned confirmation hearing Friday before the Senate Intelligence Committee for Mr. Biden’s nominee as director of national intelligence, Avril Haines, was postponed Thursday evening.

“Despite the unusual circumstances on Capitol Hill, the committee is working in good faith to move this nominee as fast as possible and ensure the committee’s members have an opportunity to question the nominee in both open and closed settings," acting chairman Sen. Marco Rubio (R., Fla.) and vice chairman Sen. Mark Warner (D., Va.), said in a statement. The senators didn’t say when the hearing would be rescheduled.

Mr. Biden on Thursday rolled out a proposal for a $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief package, focused on money for vaccine distribution, unemployment insurance, direct payments to Americans, and state and local governments. Congress passed a roughly $900 billion package in December.

Democrats are set to take over the majority later in January once two Georgia senators are seated and Kamala Harris becomes vice president and can cast a tiebreaking vote.

If Mrs. Pelosi does send the article over before Jan. 19, the trial could begin as soon as Jan. 20, the day of Mr. Biden’s inauguration, without unanimous consent among senators to delay the process. Mrs. Pelosi called Mr. Trump a “clear and present danger" in urging for impeachment this week.

Once the trial does begin, Democrats say they will want to move faster than last year’s process, arguing that public-record evidence of Mr. Trump’s behavior will allow for quick proceedings. Once they hold a majority in the chamber, Democrats will have the votes to control the process, as Republicans did last year.

“I don’t expect it to take weeks in order to move through this," said Sen. Tina Smith (D., Minn.).

The first impeachment of Mr. Trump focused on his efforts to press Ukraine to investigate Mr. Biden and his son, and the second impeachment revolves around Mr. Trump’s statements encouraging a mob that stormed the Capitol seeking to overturn Mr. Biden’s victory in the 2020 election. An impeachment trial of Mr. Trump at the beginning of Mr. Biden’s term will be the latest chapter in an extraordinary political rivalry between the two men.

At a time of reckoning among Republicans about Mr. Trump’s role in last week’s attack, it isn’t clear how many GOP senators would join Democrats in the politically perilous vote. Opinion polls released since the Capitol riot show Mr. Trump’s approval rating hitting new lows for his presidency, but he maintains broad support among Republican voters.

Along with Mr. McConnell, several others have signaled that they could be open to the possibility of voting to convict, including Sens. Ben Sasse of Nebraska and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R., Alaska) in a statement Thursday praised the House’s impeachment effort as she said she was still deciding whether she would vote to convict Mr. Trump.

“Such unlawful actions cannot go without consequence and the House has responded swiftly, and I believe, appropriately, with impeachment," Ms. Murkowski said.

If Mr. Trump is already out of office, conviction could open the door to the Senate barring him from ever holding office again. Mr. Trump has considered running for president again in 2024. Ten Republicans joined Democrats to vote to impeach Mr. Trump in the House.

Mr. Schumer said he plans to hold a vote on barring Mr. Trump from office as part of the trial.

Some Republicans have called the process rushed and have started raising questions about whether Congress can impeach an official who is out of office, previewing a possible line of argument during the eventual trial.

“We have an impeachment in 24 hours without a witness without a lawyer, without a real hearing," Sen. Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.), a close ally of Mr. Trump, said on Fox News. “Now, what’s the trial going to look like?"

There is no precedent for a president being impeached or convicted after leaving office. Both the House and Senate did proceed once with impeachment and trial for a resigned cabinet official, President Ulysses S. Grant’s War Secretary William Belknap in 1876. He was acquitted.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.