President Donald Trump turned to some legal heavyweights to help defend him in his Senate impeachment trial with the addition on Friday of former independent counsel Ken Starr, who paved the way for former President Bill Clinton’s 1998 impeachment, and prominent lawyer Alan Dershowitz, Reuters informs.
The team defending the Republican president will be led by White House counsel Pat Cipollone and Trump private attorney Jay Sekulow, the White House said.
Trump adviser and former Florida attorney general Pam Bondi and former independent counsel Robert Ray will also be on the team, according to the source familiar with the team’s composition, Reuters noted.
The White House also said Jane Raskin, one of Trump’s private lawyers, and Eric Herschmann, another former independent counsel, would be on the President’s legal team.
The trial in the Republican-led Senate formally got underway on Thursday, though it will start in earnest on Tuesday with opening statements. The trial will determine whether Trump is removed from office.
The Democratic-led House of Representatives voted on Dec. 18 to impeach Trump on two charges arising from his dealings with Ukraine – abuse of power and obstruction of Congress – after an investigation that centered on his request that Ukraine investigate political rival Joe Biden, the President’s possible Democratic opponent in the November 3 election.
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