Report: Republicans, White House officials want a Senate impeachment trial to last no more than 2 weeks

On Thursday, six Republican senators and multiple White House officials met to privately discuss strategy for a potential impeachment trial of President Trump, several officials with knowledge of the matter told The Washington Post.

The meeting was attended by Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham (S.C.), Mike Lee (Utah), Ron Johnson (Wis.), John Kennedy (La.), Ted Cruz (Texas), and Tom Cotton (Ark.); White House Counsel Pat Cipollone; acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney; senior adviser and Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner; counselor Kellyanne Conway; advisers Tony Sayegh and Pam Bondi; and White House legislative affairs director Eric Ueland, the Post reports.

During the meeting, the senators and White House officials came up with several different ways to deal with a Senate hearing, including not having a defense for Trump, in an attempt to show the trial is so flawed it doesn't need to be legitimized. There was some agreement that the best bet would be a two-week trial, a speedy affair that wouldn't damage Trump as much as a longer trial. Former President Bill Clinton's impeachment trial, which ended in an acquittal, lasted five weeks.

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In public hearings this week, several witnesses testified before the House Intelligence Committee, painting a picture of Trump pressuring Ukraine to announce investigations into former Vice President Joe Biden in exchange for the release of $400 million in military aid and a meeting at the White House. If the House, which is controlled by Democrats, votes to impeach Trump in December, the Senate trial could start as early as January, the officials said. The impeachment inquiry is making Trump "miserable," people familiar with his feelings told the Post, and he wants a trial dismissed immediately.