The impeachment process in the Senate has started. Stop Republicans to new evidence. Dem: "It's cover-up"

2020-01-22T05:43:13.642Z

The first hearing of the impeachment process against President Donald Trump, the third in history, has begun in the US Senate. There is already a head-on collision between dem and republicans. Republicans reject the Democrats' first requests, including that of having the White House chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney, testify. A controversial motion filed by Senate majority Republican leader Mitch McConnell aims at a swift trial, as Trump had called for, and possibly without new witnesses and documents. At first, the Republicans blocked the Democrats' request to introduce new evidence into the process. The motion to vote on the amendments proposed by the Senate dem leader Chuck Schumer, aimed at citing witnesses and acquiring documents, was rejected by the 53 senators of the Grand Old Party. In favor of the 47 dem senators, who however needed 51 votes. Subsequently, the Republican majority in the US Senate rejected two amendments which envisaged the acquisition in the classroom of some documents of the State Department and the White House budget office. The latter related to the decision to freeze military aid to Ukraine. The Republican majority in the Senate later rejected the amendment tabled by Democrats calling for testimony from White House staff chief Mick Mulvaney. Last October Mulvaney had admitted that the tycoon had decided to block military aid to Ukraine to put pressure on Kiev. Pressure to launch an investigation into Joe Biden, his son Hunter and the Democrats. Mulvaney then retracted his statements.