Trump’s impeachment trial to start in two weeks

Former US President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial will begin in two weeks, the Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer said.

This will be the first such trial to take place after a president has left office. Donald Trump meanwhile also became the first president in US history to be impeached twice.

Schumer said late Friday that Trump’s impeachment trial will begin in the week of February 8.

“The Senate will conduct a trial of the impeachment of Donald Trump. It will be a full trial. It will be a fair trial,” Schumer said.

The top Democratic leader in the Senate announced the schedule after reaching an agreement with Republicans, news agencies reported.

According to the timeline, US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will send the article of impeachment to the Senate on Monday, triggering the start of the former president’s trial on the charge of “incitement of insurrection” over the deadly riot at the US capitol on January 6.

The initial proceeding will begin Tuesday, and Trump’s legal team will have time to prepare the case before opening arguments begin in February.

The timeline amounts to a two-week delay and allows the Senate to conduct normal business as a new administration takes charge.

Trump was impeached for inciting a mob of his angry supporters who ransacked the US Capitol building in an attempt to overturn the results of the presidential election, which Trump falsely claimed was “stolen.”