The opening day of President Trump’s defense at the Senate impeachment trial took place this morning, and George Washington University Law School professor Jonathan Turley, who testified during a House hearing, provided his analysis of how it unfolded in a thread:
Jeff Toobin just said that the White House was less than "spellbinding." However, the predictions just before the argument was that it would going to be nothing but distractions and attacks. The White House did very well. The tenor was right and the content was highly substantive
— Jonathan Turley (@JonathanTurley) January 25, 2020
The House took a lot of hits below the waterline today. These were powerful points that gave ample foundation for senators to support acquittal without agreeing with the Dershowitz theory or the suggestion that everything was "perfect." I liked the low key, fact-based argument.
— Jonathan Turley (@JonathanTurley) January 25, 2020
The White House did a particularly good job explaining its position on refusing discovery and also the unfair process. Moreover, it was a brilliant decision to limit the opening to a few hours. The House subjected the Senate to mind-numbing repetition for 22 hours.
— Jonathan Turley (@JonathanTurley) January 25, 2020
By giving up much of the first day, the White House gave a concise opening, relieved the jury, and pushed the main argument to Monday with a larger television audience. It was a sophisticated and effective strategy that paid off. A very strong start to their case .
— Jonathan Turley (@JonathanTurley) January 25, 2020
Turley also said that Rep. Jerrold Nadler, one of the lead House managers along with Adam Schiff (who many Democrats are lauding for his legal brilliance), made a mistake:
.@JonathanTurley: Insulting Senate GOP was a "huge blunder," by @RepAdamSchiff and his impeachment managers.
"When you make arguments to juries, make sure you don’t insult the jury."https://t.co/cgAbFHKDCg
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) January 25, 2020
Prof. Turley: Nadler made a “major blunder” by insulting senatorshttps://t.co/A82urQTV6P pic.twitter.com/ApcCOTvbDL
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) January 23, 2020
That can’t be possible! We’ve been unreliably informed that the Dem impeachment managers can do no wrong.
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