Impeachment manager invokes Albus Dumbledore in closing argument against Trump


History surely has its eyes on President Trump — but House impeachment managers made sure history was looking at them, too.
House prosecutors and Trump's defense on Monday both invoked powerful rhetoric to stick the trial's landing, using sage advice from a bevy of influential leaders, including Martin Luther King Jr., Maya Angelou, Alexander Hamilton, and the fictional but no less important Harry Potter character Albus Dumbledore.
Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.) quoted Angelou after discussing Trump's self-interest, citing Angelou's warning that "when someone shows you who they are, [you should] believe them the first time." Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) first took aim at Trump with this same quote in December.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Crow also made waves when he repurposed wisdom from J.K. Rowling (speaking through the character Dumbledore) and emphasized the importance of individual decision-making.
"It is our choices that show who we truly are far more than our abilities," Crow quoted.
Trump's counsel Ken Starr also used some star power, referencing Martin Luther King Jr.'s views on freedom and justice, which he then attempted to relate to the verdict on Trump.
House Intelligence Committee Chair Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) packed a punch in his final remarks, saying "you can't trust this President to do the right thing, not for one minute, not for one election, not for the sake of our country. You just can't. He will not change. And you know it."
Then, in an apparent dig at Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Schiff said any senators who vote to acquit despite feeling Trump has been proven guilty will have their names tied to Trump's "with a cord of steel" for all of history.
"But if you find the courage to stand up to him ... your place will be among the Davids who took on Goliath," Schiff said.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Marianne is The Week’s Social Media Editor. She is a native Tennessean and recent graduate of Ohio University, where she studied journalism and political science. Marianne has previously written for The Daily Beast, The Crime Report, and The Moroccan Times.
-
June 28 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Saturday's political cartoons include stupid wars, a critical media, and mask standards
-
Thai fish pie with crispy turmeric potatoes recipe
The Week Recommends Tasty twist on the Lancashire hot pot is given a golden glow
-
Palestine Action: protesters or terrorists?
Talking Point Damaging RAF equipment at Brize Norton blurs line between activism and sabotage, but proscription is a drastic step
-
Canadian man dies in ICE custody
Speed Read A Canadian citizen with permanent US residency died at a federal detention center in Miami
-
GOP races to revise megabill after Senate rulings
Speed Read A Senate parliamentarian ruled that several changes to Medicaid included in Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" were not permissible
-
Supreme Court lets states ax Planned Parenthood funds
Speed Read The court ruled that Planned Parenthood cannot sue South Carolina over the state's effort to deny it funding
-
Trump plans Iran talks, insists nuke threat gone
Speed Read 'The war is done' and 'we destroyed the nuclear,' said President Trump
-
Trump embraces NATO after budget vow, charm offensive
Speed Read The president reversed course on his longstanding skepticism of the trans-Atlantic military alliance
-
Trump judge pick told DOJ to defy courts, lawyer says
Speed Read Emil Bove, a top Justice Department official nominated by Trump for a lifetime seat, stands accused of encouraging government lawyers to mislead the courts and defy judicial orders
-
Mamdani upsets Cuomo in NYC mayoral primary
Speed Read Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani beat out Andrew Cuomo in New York City's Democratic mayoral primary
-
Supreme Court clears third-country deportations
Speed Read The court allowed Trump to temporarily resume deporting migrants to countries they aren't from