Senators began submitting questions as the next phase of President Trump's impeachment trial opened Wednesday. Officials will have 16 hours over two days to ask questions that Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts will read aloud from index cards. Impeachment managers and the president's defense team will then have the chance to answer.
Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine), on behalf of herself and colleagues Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Senator Mitt Romney (R-Utah), asked a question about how, if the president had mixed public and private motives for withholding aid to Ukraine, should the Senate consider that fact?
Patrick Philbin, one of the president's defense attorneys, said a mixed-motive does not matter as the charge is not impeachable. He said the House's case rests upon proving the that president's request for investigations was solely for personal reasons and once there is a "legitimate public interest," the managers' case "fails."
Though GOP leadership is still trying to whip enough Senators to block witnesses, public sentiment seems to be shifting. A new Quinnipiac University poll yesterday found 75 percent of registered voters say witnesses should be allowed to testify, including 49 percent of Republicans.
"I don't think we should [feel pressure to hear witnesses], I think we should get this over with," Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C. 11th District) told Cheddar just before the start of today's session.
As questions roll in, it appears Senators are looking to clarify conflicting stories that have been argued back and forth. Both sides can be seen whispering and passing notes while scrambling to come up with quick answers.
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif. 28th District), leading the House Managers, clarified to Senators that the House did ask John Bolton to testify, but were refused. "When we subpoenaed Dr. Kupperman, he sued us, took us to court. When we raised a subpoena with John Bolton's counsel, the answer was ‘You serve us with a subpoena and we'll sue you too,’" Schiff said. Charles Kupperman was a former national security advisor to the president and Bolton's deputy.
Democrats are hoping to pass the Build Back Better Infrastructure Bill this week, but fellow Democrat Senator Joe Manchin has proven to be a steady fast hold out, stating that he will not support a multi-trillion dollar bill without greater clarity. U.S. News and World Reports Political Reporter Lisa Hagen joined Cheddar to discuss the future of the bill.
Carlo and Baker discuss the election results across the country, including a Republican comeback in Virginia -- and possibly NJ -- plus the CDC gives the go-ahead for child vaccinations, Atlanta wins the World Series and more.
David Wagner, Portfolio Manager at Aptus Capital Advisors, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he explains why we continue to see record closes from the Dow, S&P, and Nasdaq, and breaks down figures from Lyft's Q3 earnings report.
Voters across the country are heading to the polls today for Election Day. The results of some key races could signal what we can expect in upcoming elections. In Virginia, Democrat Terry McAuliffe is facing off against Republican Glenn Youngkin for governor in a tight race. The race has both parties watching because it's a big indicator of how voters are leaning ahead of the 2022 midterm elections. Kyle Kondik, managing editor of Sabato's Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics, joins Cheddar News to talk about what's in store for the state.
Laura Vozzella, local reporter for The Washington Post, joins Cheddar News to discuss the close gubernatorial race in Virginia and what voters are looking for in each candidate.
The U.S. Supreme Court takes a closer look at the Texas abortion law that was designed by its sponsors to evade constitutional review in federal court. Katie Barlow, journalist and social media editor at SCOTUSblog joins Cheddar News to breakdown what was discussed.
John Paul Mejia, the national spokesperson for the Sunrise Movement, joined Cheddar to talk about what the youth activist group wants to see from President Joe Biden as he attends the COP26 climate summit. Mejia admonished the president for having little to deliver on his own climate agenda domestically while at the conference. "We need the president to follow through with his promises because, frankly, it's a matter of life or death not only for communities here in the United States but also those looking to us around the world," he said.
With COP26 kicking off, roughly 120 world leaders and delegates are in Glasgow, Scotland to hold climate talks this week. As experts continue to warn about the dangers of climate change, ESG investing is more important than ever.
Georges Archibald, Head of Apex Americas at Apex Group joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
President Biden expected to unveil details on a Covid-19 vaccine mandate for businesses in coming days.
This comes just days after The White House issued separate vaccine mandates for federal contractors across the country. Mark Kluger, Founding Partner, employment law firm Kluger Healey joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.