Former US President Donald Trump has parted ways with his lead impeachment lawyers a little more than a week before his trial at the US Senate.
According to reports, the lawyers Butch Bowers and Deborah Barbier left the defence team after a “mutual decision” following a difference of opinion on the direction of the case.
The former president reportedly wanted them to use a defence that relied on allegations of election fraud, and they were not willing to do so.
Three other lawyers linked to the team, Josh Howard, Johnny Gasser and Greg Harris have also gone, according to sources.
His White House lawyers at his first impeachment trial last year, Pat Cipollone and Patrick Philbin, are not expected to be a part of the proceedings.
Mr Trump is the first President in America’s history to be impeached twice. The US Senate has voted to consider an article of impeachment passed by the House of Representatives, charging the former President with inciting the storming of the US Capitol by his supporters.
However, Republicans have made clear they will argue the hearing is unconstitutional because Mr Trump is no longer in office.
Forty-five out of fifty Senate Republicans backed a failed effort last week to halt the impeachment trial before it even started. Experts have indicated that it is a clear sign Mr Trump will not be convicted, regardless of his defence team.
“The Democrats’ efforts to impeach a president who has already left office is totally unconstitutional and so bad for our country,” said Trump adviser Jason Miller.
“In fact, 45 senators have already voted that it is unconstitutional. We have done much work, but have not made a final decision on our legal team, which will be made shortly.”
Clyde Wilcox, a Professor of government at Georgetown University, also said it was unlikely Mr Trump would be convicted because that would take two-thirds of the Senate.
“So as long as he really doesn’t screw it up he’s going to be acquitted.
“His best defence is the argument he began making last week that he would go and start a Patriot Party. That threat is enough to keep many of the Republican senators in line. He is also threatening to show up and defend himself. That would be quite a circus, but it would also be a disaster.”
Meanwhile, Republicans in the US Senate have also offered a counterproposal to President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill, saying a scaled-down version of the aid package would garner bipartisan support in Congress.
In a letter to President Biden, the legislators said their version of the bill would include $160bn for COVID-19 vaccines, testing, treatment and personal protective equipment, and would call for more targeted relief than Biden’s plan to issue $1,400 stimulus checks for most Americans.
“In the spirit of bipartisanship and unity, we have developed a COVID-19 relief framework that builds on prior COVID assistance laws, all of which passed with bipartisan support,” the letter said.
The lawmakers also asked to meet with the President in the coming days, adding: “Our proposal reflects many of your stated priorities, and with your support, we believe that this plan could be approved quickly by Congress with bipartisan support.”
