Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) on Saturday said that the Senate will grant a request from one of former President Trump’s attorneys to hit pause on the impeachment trial during the Jewish Sabbath.
The New York Times first reported the development Saturday night.
In a letter obtained by the Times, Trump lawyer David Schoen requested that the former president’s second impeachment trial be paused if it doesn’t conclude by the beginning of the Sabbath at 5:24 p.m. on Friday. Schoen asked for the trial to then reconvene on Sunday.
Schoen sent the letter to Schumer, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-VT), who will preside over the trial. The trial is scheduled to begin Tuesday.
“I apologize for the inconvenience my request that impeachment proceedings not be conducted during the Jewish Sabbath undoubtedly will cause other people involved in the proceedings,” Schoen said in the letter obtained by the Times. “The practices and prohibitions are mandatory for me, however; so, respectfully, I have no choice but to make this request.”
Justin Goodman, a spokesperson for Schumer, said in a statement Saturday evening that the Senate majority leader will grant Schoen’s request.
“We respect their request and of course will accommodate it,” Goodman said, according to the Times. “Conversations with the relevant parties about the structure of the trial continue.”
A mutual agreement among senators must be reached to hold the trial on a Sunday.
The Times noted that it is unclear how Senate leaders will honor Schoen’s request, which came amid senators in both parties urging a speedy trial, with Democrats looking to push Biden’s agenda forward.
