Pelosi to Deliver Impeachment Article to Senate on Monday (Sekulow Recap)

The article of impeachment will be delivered to the U.S. Senate on Monday, but the big question remains, when will a potential trial begin?

Today on Sekulow, we discussed breaking news from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will be delivering the article of impeachment on Monday.

Traditionally under the Senate impeachment rules – although I wouldn’t be surprised if they modify them – that would mean that the proceedings would start at one o’clock the next day. But they haven’t even done briefs or responses yet.

ACLJ Director of Government Affairs Thann Bennett gave a good overview of what to expect over the next few days:

So the article is going to be delivered on Monday. Senator Chuck Schumer delivered that announcement on the floor of the Senate this morning. If nothing were to be reached, if no deal were to be reached, they would begin proceedings the next day at one o’clock. I think they are actually pretty close to reaching an agreement here. Leader McConnell had actually sent a proposal to Leader Schumer outlining his proposed schedule. Essentially, he wanted the first step to take place on Thursday. I think both the Democrats and the Republicans, and quite frankly, President Trump’s team as well, I think they are all pretty close on this. You definitely have to give the President time to prepare a defense. I actually think the Democrats in the Senate might want a couple days to do a couple more nominations. So I think they will reach an agreement here. I can’t tell you exactly when the beginning of that would be, but I think it will be next week.

While it’s possible, the likelihood that the actual trial on the floor of the Senate will begin next week is unclear at best. They’re going to have to file opening briefs and the like. I think it is more probable that the trial could happen in mid-February or early February, which is still not that far away. The timing is largely dependent on what has to happen procedurally.

Clearly there is a lot of angst amongst both Democrats and Republicans on starting this trial. You see it in public comments. You can see them hedging. This is not a unity start and President Trump is going to wind up being acquitted.

In the days ahead, we will be analyzing the proceedings and keeping you up to date as the impeachment trial begins. Our team has more experience than anyone in the United States with impeachment proceedings.

The full broadcast is complete with much more analysis of what the Senate impeachment trial proceedings will look like.

Watch the full broadcast below.