USA Today Washington correspondent Christal Hayes answers the internet, "What happens if the Senate votes to impeach Trump?"

       

It has been a while since one of the president's men has been declared a hero of the republic. The pattern should be familiar by now: James Comey, a GOP hack if not a quasi-traitor for his last-minute announcement about Hillary Clinton's emails, was elevated in his own lifetime into a kind of walking Lincoln Memorial of patriotic selflessness after a show-boating hearing, a tedious memoir, and an endless series of probable leaks. The same thing has happened with every other former confidante of President Trump or official who has left the executive branch, including, rather quietly, Steve Bannon, whose indiscreet conversations made possible the 2018 anti-Trump bestseller Fire and Fury. Heck, even Omarosa was briefly feted as a member of the Resistance.Now it is John Bolton's turn to undergo public metamorphosis from dangerous reactionary warmonger who would happily nuke Iran to selfless, devoted public servant. Once again, it is because of a book, albeit one that has not yet been published.According to The New York Times, a draft of Bolton's upcoming memoir confirms that Trump at least briefly insisted upon delaying the disbursement of $391 million in aid to Ukraine until the country started investigating Joe Biden and his son Hunter. The story, which contains no direct quotations from the text, also suggests that Mike Pompeo, the secretary of state, was wary of Rudy Giuliani's involvement in American diplomacy and that Bolton had raised his and Pompeo's concerns with the attorney general, William Barr, which Barr has denied. The story, at least as articulated by the Times, seems to reinforce what impeachment-hungry Democrats have been arguing for months.But it's worth asking what Bolton's motivations are here. If what he has written is true and he thinks it is as serious a matter as the Times apparently does, was receiving a $2 million advance and imparting his secrets to Microsoft Word really the best means of bringing it to the attention of the American people? What Bolton's conduct — not least the sudden leak of the book's contents, which he cheekily blames on the White House — tells us is that he is not interested in principles. This is not about the impeachment process itself or the violation of supposed norms or even about genuine foreign policy disagreements he seems to have had with the administration: It is about personal revenge.Do motives matter? Certainly not to Democrats, who will be as happy to trade on revelations Bolton has made out of spite as they were with past Trump defectors. The president's allies, meanwhile, will claim (not wrongly) that Bolton is simply a disgruntled former employee whose recollections can safely be ignored. In any case, nothing Bolton has written is likely to change anyone's mind about the underlying facts of the Ukraine affair. The information his book is said to contain confirms everything that the president's opponents have said all along. If it was not persuasive before it will not change the balance of opinions now, when it is repeated by someone whose animus towards the administration goes without saying. This is why — spoiler alert — this process is still going to end with Trump's acquittal.The real question is whether it will be enough to convince a handful of Senate Republicans to insist upon calling witnesses (including Bolton) to testify during the Senate impeachment trial? I think the answer is possibly yes. But if witnesses are called, Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri has made it clear that he intends to force his wayward Republican colleagues — and vulnerable Democrats such as Joe Manchin in West Virginia — to vote on whether those made to testify will include both Bidens and Rep. Adam Schiff, the chairman of the House intelligence committee who is serving as the Democrats' main impeachment manager.It is not obvious to me that forcing Schiff to provide an account of how and when he became aware of the so-called whistleblower complaint or to explain his history of support for Ukrainian nationalism would benefit his party. It is even harder to see why any Democrat would want either of the Bidens to answer questions from Republican senators and members of Trump's legal team. An incomprehensible jumble of names and dates and third-hand allegations does not make for good television, as we discovered during the House impeachment hearings: Hunter explaining why he thought he was qualified to serve as a well-paid expert on Eurasian mining infrastructure and why Joe suddenly cares so much about military aid that the Obama administration had refused to provide in the first place would be. Meanwhile, calling witnesses would likely keep Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, and possibly even Biden himself away from the campaign trail ahead of the Iowa caucus and the New Hampshire primary.What Bolton's testimony would reveal apart from what has already been reported is uncertain. But it is impossible not to imagine that he would make for a much more compelling witness than anyone the Democrats managed to secure during the House phase of impeachment proceedings. This would be true less because of the content than due to the manner in which it would be presented. Here is someone who can speak directly to Trump's frame of mind and motivations, an old Fox News hand who knows how to tell a story. Bolton on the witness stand would be direct, forceful, and no doubt at least occasionally amusing.For both sides in the impeachment debate the calling of witnesses would come at a considerable price. Only Bolton has nothing to lose here.More stories from theweek.com Mike Pompeo is a disgrace If Bernie wins Supreme Court lets Trump administration go ahead with public charge rule restricting legal immigration

Ever since leaks from former National Security Adviser John Bolton's forthcoming book made their way to the public, the odds of the Senate calling him as a witness to take the stand in President Trump's impeachment trial appear to have gone up. Speculation about other witnesses has also entered the fold. One of those potential witnesses is acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney, who famously admitted to Trump's Ukraine quid pro quo during a press conference last year.But through his lawyer, Mulvaney denied knowing anything about the revelations in Bolton's books or ever having a conversation with Trump about freezing Ukrainian military aid in exchange for announcing investigations into Trump's domestic political opponents.At first glance, it seems like Mulvaney and his counsel are taking a proactive approach should the Senate issue a subpoena, as well as launching an effort to discredit Bolton. But CNN's Jake Tapper pointed out that Bolton may not have alerted Mulvaney to his concerns about the Trump administration's Ukraine policy because he reportedly thought Mulvaney played a central role in its formation. > According to Dr. Fiona Hill, Bolton in July described the alleged scheme as a "drug deal" cooked up by Mulvaney and Sondland. > > Why, then, would he have expressed his concerns to Mulvaney in August? https://t.co/ftHNCSpt8m> > -- Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) January 27, 2020More stories from theweek.com Mike Pompeo is a disgrace If Bernie wins Sen. Josh Hawley disputes Bolton is a 'firsthand witness.' Bolton reportedly said he spoke directly with Trump on Ukraine.

USA Today Washington correspondent Christal Hayes answers the internet, "is Dershowitz the attorney of the millennium?"

       

An explosive Sunday night leak on ex-Trump adviser John Bolton’s forthcoming memoir—which reportedly reveals a first-hand account of the president’s desire to withhold aid to Ukraine in exchange for investigations of his political rivals—left Senate Republicans scrambling on Monday to keep their plans for a speedy acquittal of the president.By mid day, GOP lawmakers had already thrown out all manner of excuses to justify rejecting a vote to call additional witnesses (of which Bolton would be one) and evidence in Trump’s impeachment trial. The Bolton disclosure, which was reported by The New York Times reportedly took them by surprise and forced Republicans to dig even deeper as swing votes like Sens. Mitt Romney (UT) and Susan Collins (ME) declared that they were even closer to supporting additional witness testimony.“I think it’s increasingly clear,what John Bolton would have  to say would be important for those of us who are asked to render impartial justice,” Romney told reporters, adding that he had not yet spoken with other members and couldn’t guess how the news had impacted them. Beyond Romney and Collins, however, Democrats would still need two more Republicans to join them in voting for witnesses—a vote that is not expected to occur until later this week. And it was unclear on Monday afternoon whether the Bolton news would compel those GOP defectors to come forward.One member, Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), who has not said whether he’ll vote for witnesses, remained tight lipped Monday, saying he would make that determination “after we’ve heard all the arguments, after we’ve heard the questions and the answers to the questions...then we’ll have that vote.”Asked by a reporter if he thought Bolton had shifted the dynamic at all, Alexander replied: “I can’t say anything more than I’ve just said.”  Bolton Impeachment Testimony Bombshell Flummoxes Senate GOPThat more Senate Republicans weren’t publicly jarred by news of Bolton’s manuscript illustrated the degree to which the party has remained committed to keeping President Trump’s impeachment trial as tight and succinct as possible. Indeed, in the immediate aftermath, the party’s main actors and committees chose to turn fire back on Bolton by portraying him as opportunistic and aggrieved. Even the Republican National Committee put out a press release attacking Bolton, who has raised and spent thousands to elect GOP lawmakers through his super PAC. The Bolton news came as the president’s defense team was set to spend a full day on the Senate floor laying out their case to acquit Trump. Many GOP senators urged reporters to “take a breath” and let the White House make its case before coming to any judgments. Republicans who had already been inclined to side with the president, meanwhile, threw out new reasons to not put Bolton or other witnesses under oath. Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO) blamed House Democrats for not securing Bolton’s testimony and warned that calling witnesses would pose thorny legal questions that would prolong the trial.“It’s the House’s job to put a case together,” said Blunt. “It’s then our job to deal with that in a prompt manner. Unless there’s a witness that’s going to change the outcome, I can’t imagine why we'd want to stretch this out for weeks and months. And if we call any witnesses that are subject to privilege, it would take weeks at least.”When asked, other Republicans didn’t engage with the substance of the report, but instead raised the notion that the timing of the leak was suspicious. “The timing on this was not a coincidence,” said Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) as he dashed into a Republican members’ lunch. Speaking to reporters at a press conference, Sen. Mike Braun (R-IN) didn’t deny that the news had changed the dynamic of a trial that just 24 hours ago was seemingly speeding to a quick resolution in favor of an acquittal. “I think it is clear the question of witnesses was going to come up anyway and in this case, it may move the needle in one direction or another,” said Braun. “I’m not going to deny it’s going to change the decibel level and probably the intensity with which we go about talking about witnesses.”Democrats hammered the news as yet another reason why additional witnesses and evidence must be subpoenaed. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), the lead impeachment manager, told reporters that Senate Republicans “appear to be reconsidering.”“He ought to come in, testify under oath… senators should not wait until Mar. 17 when the book comes out,” Schiff said. “It’s not a question of whether I trust John Bolton or the Republican senators trust him. He should be placed under oath.”Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.