White House officials said Tuesday that President Donald Trump is unconcerned about an impeaching impeachment trial in the Senate, noting that he’s “not afraid of a fight.”
The comments come ahead of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) pledge to send two articles of impeachment to the Senate on Wednesday after holding onto them for nearly a month.
The articles accuse the president of abusing his power and obstructing Congress in allegations related to a phone call he had with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in July.
Appearing on “Fox & Friends,” White House deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley said, “I hate to talk about hypotheticals, but let’s be clear: The president is not afraid of a fight.
“And if you or anyone within the sound of our voices have been falsely accused of a crime, with no proof and no evidence, for more than three years, you’d want every witness to come forward too, and say this man did nothing wrong,” he continued.
“We are not afraid of a fight. We are prepared and whether this thing goes to a full trial, whether it’s modified or whether it’s just dismissed out of hand for the sham illegitimate scam it has become, we will be ready.”
Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), the No. 4 Republican in the upper chamber, announced Monday that there aren’t enough votes to dismiss the two articles of impeachment against Trump.
“I think our members generally are not interested in the motion to dismiss. They think both sides need to be heard,” Blunt told reporters.