As for barring Mr. McConnell, the short answer is no. The thing to remember is that Chief Justice Roberts is the presiding officer in the same way that a vice president is, and a vice president can’t tell the Senate what a senator should do. The Senate itself could conceivably disqualify a senator, but that would require a majority vote.
Sebastian asked:
Why are Rudy Giuliani, Lev Parnas & Co. not being forced to testify? It would be very important to know to what extent Trump was aware of their actions.
KEN VOGEL, investigative reporter: Mr. Giuliani was subpoenaed in late September by the Democrat-controlled House Intelligence Committee, which asked him for records related to Mr. Parnas, Igor Fruman and some of his foreign business activity. He defied that subpoena, but has offered to cooperate with Republicans in the Senate, volunteering to provide Senator Lindsey Graham with evidence and witnesses that he says justifies Mr. Trump’s efforts to push the Ukrainians to pursue investigations.
Mr. Parnas, on the other hand, has signaled that he is willing to offer potentially damaging testimony about Mr. Giuliani and Mr. Trump. Through his lawyer, Mr. Parnas has offered to testify to Democrats in the House, and he has convinced the court overseeing his criminal case in New York to clear him to share the contents of his iPhone with House Democrats.
Katie from Massachusetts asked:
Who is most likely to be an impeachment manager, and does Nancy Pelosi pick them or does the House vote?
EMILY COCHRANE, congressional reporter: The House will have to vote on the managers, but they will vote on a group that Speaker Nancy Pelosi picks — and she has not given any indication about who her choices are. It’s likely to be a smaller, more diverse group than the 13 white men chosen for the Clinton trial — and Representatives Adam Schiff and Jerry Nadler are widely expected to be among those tapped because of their chairmanships and involvement in the investigation.
Lora asked:
Do reporters get any sense of whether any Republican senators feel secretly frustrated by McConnell’s strategy? Or, are they all in?
CARL HULSE, chief Washington correspondent: The Republican senators most frustrated with Mr. McConnell have already said so publicly, like Lisa Murkowski. The more moderate Republicans also trust that Mr. McConnell will do whatever he can to protect them during the trial.