Legal scholar who defended Trump during impeachment objects to his idea of adjourning Congress

Jonathan Turley.
(Image credit: Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)

Jonathan Turley, a constitutional law professor who was a Republican witness during the impeachment inquiry of President Trump, took issue with Trump accusing Congress of "obstructing" his ability to appoint judges and threatening to close both chambers.

Trump said Wednesday evening he was considering exercising "my constitutional authority to adjourn both chambers" so he could make recess appointments, adding, "it's something I'd prefer not doing, but which I should do and I will do if I have to." The president can adjourn the House and Senate when the chambers are unable to agree on when to adjourn, but this constitutional power has not been used before by any president.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

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.

Sign up
Explore More
Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.