Trump 'loved' it when his defense team called impeachment trial 'constitutional cancel culture,' report says
- Trump was pleased with his defense teams' performance during the impeachment trial on Friday.
- Aides told Politico he "loved" it when his lawyers called the trial "constitutional cancel culture."
- Trump was also happy with his team playing a lengthy montage of Democrats saying the word "fight."
In a change of tone from earlier this week, Former President Donald Trump was reportedly very pleased with his defense teams' performance on Friday, according to Politico.
Trump is in the midst of his second impeachment trial after the House last month charged him with "incitement of insurrection" related to the deadly US Capitol riot on January 6.
His defense team, which only used about 2 1/2 of their 16 allotted hours on Friday, made unfounded claims about the 2020 election, accused Democrats of hypocrisy, and argued that Trump had a legal right to challenge the election result.
Trump's lawyers - Bruce Castor Jr., Michael van der Veen, and David Schoen - also claimed his comments at the "Save America" rally preceding the riot was protected under the First Amendment to the Constitution.
According to an aide working on the defense team, Trump was very pleased with their performance.
The former president specifically "loved" it when van der Veen denounced the impeachment trial as "constitutional cancel culture," the aide said, according to Politico.
Trump was reportedly also happy about the lengthy video montage that was played to juxtapose his "law and order" comments with those made by Democrats during the George Floyd protests last summer, Politico reported.
"Attorneys did what they needed to do," the aide said.
Trump's mood appears to have taken a turn for the better after it was reported that he was "borderline screaming" and "deeply unhappy" with his team's performance earlier this week.
House impeachment managers opened the impeachment trial on Tuesday with a graphic video of the Capitol riot and argued the former president incited the deadly riot.
Trump was so unhappy with the first few days of the proceedings that he met with his team on Thursday to consult with them, CNN reported. As per CNN, senior aide Jason Miller promised him his lawyers would "tighten up."
The former president wasn't the only one who was satisfied with his defense teams' performance.
Some Republican senators already said the presentation so far was better than their opening arguments on Tuesday.
Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, who a staunch supporter of Trump, said his "lawyers blew the House managers' case out of the water" and that they should "rest the case right now."
"I thought David Schoen was exceptionally strong," former Trump campaign adviser Roger Stone added, according to Politico. "Finally, the president has someone who will fight for him and make the best possible case and get to a vote as soon as possible."
One former aide also told Politico that he thinks Trump supporters will also be happy with what unfolded on Friday.
"His base will be pleased. He had four hours of free television to pitch [to the public]. It became defending Trump as much as putting Democrats on trial," the former aide told Politico.
Both the impeachment managers and the defense team completed their arguments in three days. Senators could vote as early as Saturday.