Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) is preparing to file a request for subpoenas for several new witnesses to testify in President Trump’s Senate impeachment trial due to repeated requests from Democrats to allow new witnesses.
According to reports from Politico, Hawley is ready and has already chosen the people he would love to have testify at the Senate trial. Hawley has drafted subpoenas for those in the White House Intelligence Committee that includes Chairman Adam Schiff (D-CA), Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, as well as the Ukraine whistleblower. There are others on the short list as well, but those are the major players he would like to have on the witness stand.
“I have drafted motions to subpoena Adam Schiff, the ‘whistleblower,’ Hunter Biden, and Joe Biden to testify. If the Senate calls witnesses, I will ask for votes on all these next week,” Hawley announced on his social media account.
The well-executed move from Hawley plays well with the plans of GOP Senators Ted Cruz (TX) and Rand Paul (KY) to force votes so that they can hear testimony from Hunter Biden, the son of former vice president Joe Biden, who was on the board of Ukrainian energy company Burisma while his father was vice president of the U.S.
Since the accusation of Trump’s pressuring Ukraine to investigate the Bidens is at the core of the impeachment case against the president, these tactics were made to motivate some of the senators to cast their vote next week to consider new evidence in the impeachment trial.
If Hawley and the GOP are able to convince the Democrats to introduce new witnesses, he can then ask for the issue of the subpoenas. At that time, Hawley would also seek all communications related to the Whistleblower, the House impeachment managers, Schiff and his staff, as well as other relevant communications. He also wants to include Joe Biden’s admitted actions to remove former top Ukrainian prosecutor General Viktor Shokin due to concerns that he was allowing corruption in his own office by completely ignoring it. It is noted that this timely removal reportedly came while Shokin was investigating Burisma.
If they succeed, one of the questions Hawley will ask is if Biden’s involvement with issues about Shokin had approval. “Before Vice President Joe Biden sought to remove Shokin, did the White House Counsel’s Office or the Office of the Vice President legal counsel issue ethics advice approving Mr. Biden’s involvement in matters involving Shokin, despite the presence of Hunter Biden on the Burisma board?” Hawley will ask.
All that is required for this to happen is for Hawley to seek the evidence he needs is a simple majority vote. This brilliant move by the GOP not only gives them everything they need to prove the president’s case, but it also disproves Democratic Party’s narrative that Republicans will not consider allowing new evidence and witnesses to testify during the president’s Senate trial.
Chief Justice John Roberts is allowing Senators to begin asking questions for 16 hours, beginning on Wednesday at 1 p.m.
