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Meet the 7 House Representatives who will argue the case for convicting Trump in his upcoming impeachment trial
Meet the 7 House Representatives who will argue the case for convicting Trump in his upcoming impeachment trial
Grace PanettaJan 17, 2020, 20:11 IST
APHouse Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif., signs the resolution to transmit the two articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump to the Senate for trial on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has announced the impeachment managers designated to lead the prosecution in President Donald Trump's trial in the Senate.
Pelosi selected a diverse group of representatives all with legal backgrounds, but varying degrees of seniority in Congress, for the high-profile job.
"As you can see from these descriptions, the emphasis is on litigators," Pelosi said after announcing the managers.
Here's what you need to know about the seven impeachment managers who will argue the case for convicting Trump.
On January 15, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the impeachment managers designated to lead the prosecution in President Donald Trump's trial in the Senate.
Impeachment managers present the case against an impeached official - in this case, Trump - to the Senate. Pelosi selected a diverse group of representatives with legal backgrounds, but varying degrees of seniority in Congress, for the job.
"As you can see from these descriptions, the emphasis is on litigators," Pelosi said after announcing the managers. She also cited "comfort in the courtroom" as a necessity for the role, which relies on convincing a jury of US Senators.
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"I'm very proud and honored that these seven members have accepted this very serious responsibility," the House speaker said.
Later that day, the House passed resolutions both formally appointing the impeachment managers and transmitting the articles to the US Senate, which began its trial on January 16 and is expected to kick off opening arguments from both sides on Tuesday, January 21.
Here's what you need to know about the seven impeachment managers who will argue the case for convicting Trump:
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA)
Schiff, who has spearheaded the House's impeachment inquiry of Trump and led all the hearings, will serve as the lead impeachment manager with the other six as his assistants.
In his role, Schiff designed much of the strategy behind the impeachment inquiry, questioned dozens of key witnesses both behind closed doors and in open session, and kept hearings focused and on track.
Schiff served a term in the California State Senate in the late 1990s, and was elected to Congress in 2000. He served as the Intelligence Committee's ranking member starting in 2015 and became its chair when Democrats took back control of the House in 2018.
Before going into politics, Schiff was an assistant US attorney in the Central District of California. He holds a BA from Stanford University and a law degree from Harvard University.
The New York congressman, who was also in the House during Bill Clinton's impeachment, has served on the Judiciary Committee's subcommittee on the Constitution for 13 years, as Pelosi noted in introducing him as a manager.
In the early 1970s, Lofgren served as a staffer to a congressman sitting on the Judiciary Committee as it pursued its impeachment inquiry of Richard Nixon, who ultimately resigned before he could be impeached.
After serving in local elected office in the San Jose area for several years, Lofgren was elected to the House in 1994, and was also a member of Congress during Bill Clinton's impeachment inquiry and trial.
Impeachment is a grave & solemn matter. It's a stress test for our democracy. I hope every Senator is prepared to seriously consider & vote honestly with an open mind for the future of our democracy. (3/3)
As the House Democratic Caucus Chair, Jeffries is a senior member of House leadership, a talented legislator, and widely perceived as a rising star who could even hold Pelosi's position one day.
The New York Times describes him as a "messaging guru" who is "as likely to quote from the Bible as he is from 1990s hip-hop lyrics."
Before his election to the New York State Assembly in 2006 and then to Congress in 2012, Jeffries cut his legal chops as a superstar corporate litigator.
While working as a litigation counsel for CBS & Viacom, Jeffries defended the network in some of its high-profile legal disputes over Janet Jackson's notorious wardrobe malfunction in her performance with Justin Timberlake during the 2004 Superbowl halftime show.
Rep. Val Demings (D-FL)
Demings, who is in her second term in Congress representing Central Florida, sits on both the House Intelligence and Judiciary Committees.
Crow is a first-term lawmaker and former US Army Ranger who flipped a formerly Republican-held district in the Denver suburbs in the 2018 midterms.
In addition to a distinguished career as an Army Capitan, Crow practiced law in the Denver area before his election to Congress.
He was also one of seven freshman representatives with national security backgrounds who helped turn the tide in the House towards impeachment with a pivotal Washington Post op-ed backing an inquiry.
Rep. Sylvia Garcia (D-TX)
Garcia, a first-term congresswoman who represents the Houston area and serves on the Judiciary Committee, previously led a decades-long career working in the city's legal system.
Before being elected to the Texas State Senate and later to Congress, Garcia served the presiding judge for the Houston Municipal System, as Houston's city controller, and was the first woman elected to the Harris County Commissioner's Court.
