WASHINGTON — Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) would not say on Monday whether she supported sending a subpoena to former National Security Advisor John Bolton in the upcoming impeachment trial of President Trump.
Collins did suggest that she supported the approach taken by Senate Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) in running an impeachment trial in which witnesses are called after the process’s initial phases.
When asked by TPM whether she believed the Senate should issue a subpoena to Bolton, who indicated on Monday that he would testify upon receiving a Senate subpoena, Collins launched into a description of the kind of trial she would like to see.
“I believe that the Senate should follow the precedent that was established in the trial of President Clinton, where we had three stages,” Collins said. “First, we heard opening statements from both sides, then senators submitted our own questions through the chief justice.”
“And then, we took up the issue of witnesses,” she added.
Collins responded to a follow-up question about subpoenaing Bolton that “we will decide at that stage who we need to hear from.”
McConnell has said that the Senate will decide on which witnesses to call once the initial phases of the trial are complete.
