By Jack Smith, a lawyer representing President Donald Trump, has asked a judge to block the president from making any “partisan political attacks” during his ongoing Senate impeachment trial.
In a motion submitted to the Senate chamber on Wednesday, Smith argued that the Republicans in attendance “may be too overtly partisan in their intent, and dramatically alter the constitutional standard into something more akin to a political grandstanding session.” He asked the Senate to civilize and limit the president’s right to free speech in order to keep the proceedings in the “high constitutional standard” for which they were intended.
The motion was prompted after Trump made several sharply partisan comments while being questioned by defense lawyers the previous day.
The judge has yet to rule on Smith’s motion.
