There are eight Republicans from the House of Representatives who were tapped to join President Donald Trump’s defense team in the Senate impeachment trial.
“Honored to continue fighting on behalf of [Donald Trump],” Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.), one of the lawmakers on the list, tweeted.
Collins is among seven others who will be defending Trump against the impeachment charges — abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.
The Trump administration announced on Monday that the other Congressional members include Reps. Mike Johnson (R-La.), Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.), John Ratcliffe (R-Ill.), and Debbie Lesko (R-Ariz.).
The White House press secretary wrote in the announcement:
“The President looks forward to their continued participation and is confident that the Members will help expeditiously end this brazen political vendetta on behalf of the American people.”
Collins added on Twitter in a strong rebuke of the impeachment charges against the president, “This impeachment has been a sham since day one, and we will continue to expose it for what it is: A blatantly political attempt to overturn the will of 63 million Americans.”
Others of those chosen to defend Trump in the trial also reiterated their support of the president and blasted the entirety of the impeachment.
“The President NEVER should have been impeached in the first place!” Zeldin tweeted late Monday.
Lesko wrote, “I will continue to fight against this corrupt [and] unfair process and look forward to assisting President Trump as a member of his Impeachment Team.”
“It’s not complicated: when all is said and done, [Donald Trump] will be vindicated from this partisan impeachment,” Meadows declared, adding, “The facts are on the President’s side.”
Check out their responses below:
Honored to be asked to serve on @realDonaldTrump's Impeachment Team, along with my House colleagues @RepDougCollins @RepMikeJohnson @Jim_Jordan @RepDLesko @RepMarkMeadows @RepRatcliffe @RepStefanik.
— Lee Zeldin (@RepLeeZeldin) January 21, 2020
The President NEVER should have been impeached in the first place!
I am honored to be named to President @realDonaldTrump’s Impeachment Team. Democrats are playing politics, and they are playing dirty. I will continue to fight against this corrupt & unfair process and look forward to assisting President Trump as a member of his Impeachment Team.
— Congresswoman Debbie Lesko (@RepDLesko) January 21, 2020
It’s not complicated: when all is said and done, @realDonaldTrump will be vindicated from this partisan impeachment.
— Mark Meadows (@MarkMeadows) January 21, 2020
The facts are on the President’s side.
https://twitter.com/RepRatcliffe/status/1219437279401390081
Honored to be named by @realDonaldTrump as a Member of the President’s Impeachment Defense Team.
— Elise Stefanik (@EliseStefanik) January 21, 2020
I am proud to stand up for the Constitution, my constituents, and the American people’s vote. #NY21 ??
The Democrat majority in the House ignored the Constitution and the rule of law to obtain their single-party impeachment vote, and this has not been a fair fight—until now. I look forward to working with this exceptional team to ensure that order is restored and justice prevails.
— Rep. Mike Johnson (@RepMikeJohnson) January 21, 2020
On Tuesday, the Senate is expected to pass a rules package for the trial proposed by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Monday.
McConnell’s proposal includes providing the House’s impeachment managers, as well as Trump’s defense lawyers, up to 24 hours to present their arguments, as The New York Times reports. Following the arguments, senators would ask questions, then they would decide whether to have witnesses.
The proposal, however, has already received a strong rebuke, including from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), who argued that McConnell “is hell-bent on making it much more difficult to get witnesses and documents and intent on rushing the trial through,” as IJR reported.
