U.S. Senate drops new testimonies and pushes Trump's acquittal

By simple majority, the US Senate ruled out the possibility of hearing new testimonies at the impeachment trial of US President Donald Trump , and paved the way for his acquittal. The Democratic opposition's election was won by only two votes thanks to the retreat of Senator Lisa Murkowski, from the state of Alaska, who previously proposed to support the inclusion of new statements. In total, 49 parliamentarians voted for the proposal and against 51.

With the decision, the Senate trial, chaired by Supreme Court President John Roberts, is expected to end in the early hours of Saturday, 1. The testimony of John Bolton , former White House National Security Advisor, would never will be heard as an accusation piece, although excerpts from his new memoir, censored by Trump, were published by The New York Times . His reports would reinforce the evidence of abuse of power by the American president by pressing Ukraine's leader Vladimir Zelensky to investigate his potential opponent in the November elections, former President Joe Biden .

In plenary discussions, Murkowski said he carefully reconsidered the need for new witnesses and documents at the trial and that approval of the impeachment process passed in the House of Representatives last December had been rushed and failed. “Given the partisan nature of this impeachment from the beginning and throughout the process, I have come to the conclusion that there will be no fair trial in the Senate. I do not believe that continuing this process will change anything. It is sad for me to admit that, as an institution, Congress failed, ”said Murkowski.

Two of his 53 Republican colleagues, moderates Mitt Romney and Susan Collins, spoke out in favor of the issue. Democrats, who called the trial without further testimony as a scam, would need the support of at least four Republican senators to win the vote and increase the chances of Trump's impeachment.

Patty Murray, who is part of the Democratic Party leadership in the Senate, told reporters that "all the signs pointed to a hasty acquittal of an impeached president."