来自纽约的民主党参议员、参议院少数党领袖查克·舒默(Chuck Schumer)表示，他在国会上院的共和党同事将支持他的呼吁，让特朗普政府官员——迄今为止一直被白宫阻止——在参议院弹劾总统的可能性越来越大的事件中作证。
舒默在给肯塔基州共和党参议员、参议院多数党领袖米奇·麦康奈尔的一封信中写道，唐纳德·特朗普总统的前国家安全顾问约翰·博尔顿、代理白宫幕僚长米克·穆尔瓦尼、幕僚长罗伯特·布莱尔的高级顾问以及管理和预算办公室官员迈克尔·杜菲应该被传唤在可能的审判中作证。舒默在周一早上接受美国有线电视新闻网采访时表示，一些共和党参议员会支持他的要求。
舒默说:“我的希望要么是他[·麦康奈尔，如果不是他，许多共和党人会支持这方面的一些东西，这样我们就能得到公平的审判，事实也就大白于天下。”。
在随后的片段中，这位参议员补充道，他希望“一些”共和党同事在阅读他的信时会说“这很公平”。“他们不想成为掩饰的一部分，”他断言道。
然而，尽管舒默持乐观态度，包括麦康奈尔在内的几个主要共和党人建议他们不打算考虑任何新的事实，辩称他们已经下定决心要弹劾。麦康奈尔在上周四接受福克斯新闻采访时说，如果有审判，他将与白宫密切合作，并声称他会从总统的法律顾问那里得到“暗示”。
因此，许多民主党人一些保守派批评麦康奈尔和其他共和党参议员违背了弹劾审判前要求他们做出的誓言。那誓言声明他们“将根据宪法公正执法”
麦康奈尔的媒体代表没有回应新闻周刊通过电子邮件请求发表评论。8月20日，美国总统唐纳德·特朗普在华盛顿特区白宫椭圆形办公室聆听国家安全顾问约翰·博尔顿的讲话
舒默在接受美国有线电视新闻网采访时表示，如果众议院投票弹劾总统，案件将提交参议院审理，他还没有决定是宣布特朗普无罪还是解除其职务。他指出，在做出决定之前，他想听听他要求的四名证人的意见。
白宫被禁止的行政官员在9月底正式启动的众议院弹劾调查中作证。它还拒绝服从与调查有关的传票。尽管白宫做出了决定，但仍有多名政府官员选择作证，博尔顿、马尔瓦尼、达菲和布莱尔没有。不清楚如果他们被要求在参议院作证，他们是否会遵守。
SCHUMER SUGGESTS GOP SENATORS WILL SUPPORT CALL FOR BOLTON, MULVANEY TO TESTIFY: 'THEY DON'T WANT TO BE A PART OF A COVER-UP'
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York, suggested that his Republican colleagues in the upper chamber of Congress would support his calls to have Trump administration officials—who have been blocked by the White House so far—testify in the increasingly likely event of a Senate impeachment trial for the president.
In a letter sent to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky, Schumer wrote that President Donald Trump's former National Security Adviser John Bolton, acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney, senior adviser to the chief of staff Robert Blair and Office of Management and Budget official Michael Duffey should be called to testify in the potential trial. In a Monday morning interview with CNN, Schumer suggested that some GOP senators would support his demand.
"My hope is either he [McConnell], and if not him, a number of Republicans will support something along these lines, so that we can actually get a fair trial and the facts to come out," Schumer said.
Later in the segment, the senator added he expects "some" of his Republican colleagues to say "that's fair," when they read his letter. "They don't want to be a part of a cover-up," he asserted.
However, despite Schumer's optimism, several leading Republicans – including McConnell – have suggested that they do not intend to consider any new facts, arguing that their minds have already been made up when it comes to impeachment. McConnell said in an interview with Fox News last Thursday that he would work closely with the White House in the event of a trial, asserting that he'd take his "cues" from the president's legal counsel.
As a result, many Democrats – and some conservatives – have criticized McConnell and other GOP senators for going against the oath that they will be required to take prior to undertaking the impeachment trial. That oath states that they "will do impartial justice according to the Constitution."
McConnell's media representatives did not respond to Newsweek's email requests for comment by publication.
President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media as National Security Adviser John Bolton listens in the Oval Office of the White House on August 20 in Washington, D.C.
Schumer said in his CNN interview that he had not yet made up his mind on whether to acquit or remove Trump from office if the House of Representatives votes to impeach the president and the case goes to the Senate for trial. He noted that he wanted to hear from the four witnesses he'd requested before making a determination.
The White House barred administration officials from testifying in the House impeachment inquiry, which was formally launched at the end of September. It also refused to comply with subpoenas connected to the probe. While multiple administration officials still chose to testify, despite the White House decision, Bolton, Mulvaney, Duffy and Blair did not. It's unclear whether they would comply if they were asked to testify before the Senate.
