They have nothing…During the Clinton impeachment trial there were no new witnesses. The Senate only heard from witnesses already part of the evidence produced by the House.
· All three witnesses heard by the Senate during the Clinton impeachment, Vernon Jordan, Monica Lewinsky, and Sidney Blumenthal, were included in the House managers’ trial memorandum sent to the Senate.
o All three witnesses had their Grand Jury testimony referenced and they were only heard by the Senate to examine evidence that was already gathered.
· The report produced by the House Judiciary Committee during the Clinton impeachment repeatedly relied on testimony provided by the three witnesses the Senate would hear from.
o The Independent Counsel’s report submitted to the House Judiciary committee included testimony from all three witnesses heard by the Senate.
· Throughout the investigation leading up to Clinton’s impeachment, the three witnesses were interviewed multiple times, including by a Grand Jury, the Independent Counsel, and the FBI.
o Vernon Jordan appeared before the Grand Jury five times.
o Lewinsky was questioned by the FBI, provided testimony to the Grand Jury twice, and provided a deposition to the Independent Counsel.
o Sidney Blumenthal testified before the Grand Jury three times.
· By the time Clinton’s impeachment reached the Senate, all three witnesses had been interviewed repeatedly and become part of the evidence submitted for consideration.
The Senate shouldn’t do the House’s job and develop new evidence while an impeachment trial is ongoing, which is exactly what calling new witnesses would do.
· It is not the Senate’s job to conduct an impeachment inquiry, but that’s exactly what House Democrats are asking them to do.
· For the first time in modern history, the Senate is being asked to hear from new witnesses never included in a case against a president.
o During Clinton’s impeachment, the Senate examined and questioned evidence that was submitted to them by the House, including witnesses.
· This would be an unprecedented expansion of the Senate’s role in impeachment and allow the House Democrats to restart their investigation of the President in the middle of a trial.
o The House would have a free hand to send up articles of impeachment for political purposes knowing the investigation would continue in the Senate.
· House Democrats have already presented their case, they’ve called their case “overwhelming,” but now they say they also need new witnesses for their case to be sufficient.
o House Democrats refused to wait for court decisions and rushed their vote on impeachment to get it done before Christmas.
o Now House Democrats are trying to make up for their shoddy processes by putting the burden on the Senate. The House Democrats should stand by the case they’ve created.
· The Senate shouldn’t do the House’s job and develop the evidence they are supposed to make judgement on.
o The Senate’s role is to “try all impeachments” not investigate the President in an ongoing impeachment trial.