What Went Down On Day 1 Of The Impeachment Hearings

Plus, Micah, “bribery” is in the Constitution, so Democrats want to zero in on that language. (“The President, Vice President and all Civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” — U.S. Constitution, Article II, section 4)

Yeah, Clare, that was a clear misstep on Schiff’s part — it rung oddly even in real time. Sober and fact-laden seems like the much better approach.

Well, Schiff’s opening statement is certainly different from the one he did during the Maguire hearing: no pretending he’s the president via weird imagined dialogue. He got in trouble for that one, given that Trump twisted Schiff’s attempted … comedy? This statement is fact-laden and gives the stakes — Schiff saying the very institution of the presidency is under trial in these hearings.