WATCH: Schiff says Trump’s team has lowered the bar on conspiring with foreign countries

Trump's first impeachment - 2020

Asked by a group of Democratic senators whether accepting information from a foreign source would violate campaign finance law, House manager Rep. Adam Schiff said President Donald Trump’s legal team had suggested that, not only was it okay to accept this sort of information, but that it is also acceptable to “criminally conspire” with another country to get help in an election. While Schiff recognized that special counsel Robert Mueller found no evidence that the Trump campaign conspired with Russia to help him win the 2016 election, it wouldn’t matter to Trump’s lawyers even if the campaign did. Schiff said this amounted to “a remarkable lowering of the bar” to the point of where “everything’s okay” as long as it helps a president win an election. Senators had their first chance to ask questions of the House managers and President Donald Trump’s legal team on Wednesday, Jan. 29. That came after both sides were given three days, respectively, to present their case. The House of Representatives impeached Trump in December on two articles--abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. The questions come ahead of a vote on whether to bring forward witnesses and documents as part of the Senate trial. The Senate must now decide whether to acquit the president or convict him of the charges and remove him from office.

For more on who’s who in the Trump impeachment inquiry, read

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