Donald Trump’s legal team is scrambling to collect and produce more videos to bolster their impeachment trial arguments after a rambling debut performance that enraged the former president, according to a person familiar with the discussions.
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s legal team is scrambling to collect and produce more videos to bolster their impeachment trial arguments after a rambling debut performance that enraged the former president and dismayed Republicans, according to a person familiar with the discussions. The move to use more videotape — and lean away from in-person arguments — amounts to a tacit acknowledgment that the lawyers Trump has enlisted to defend him during his second impeachment trial are failing to inspire confidence. Among the tape Trump’s team is now scrambling to assemble are clips of Democrats who also lost elections but declined to immediately concede. The former president’s legal team hopes to argue Trump was doing something similar when he cast doubt on the 2020 election results using false claims of voter fraud. The videos could also help expedite the proceedings; after Tuesday’s meandering and widely panned performance, Trump and some of his fellow Republicans are hoping more than ever to conclude the trial as quickly as possible.
