NEW EVIDENCE continues to emerge, yet Republican senators, led by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), seem no more interested in conducting a serious inquiry into President Trump’s corrupt Ukraine pressure campaign.
“It’s the Senate’s turn now — to render sober judgment as the framers envisioned,” Mr. McConnell declared Friday, even as he promised nothing of the sort, dismissing calls for the Senate to demand still-hidden documents and the appearance of key witnesses as it considers removing Mr. Trump from office. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), while professing to be “open to witnesses,” said it is “premature to decide who should be called until we see the evidence that is presented.”
The flaw in that premise is that the White House is blocking disclosure of critical evidence. The material already in the record is damning, but questions remain about the extent to which Mr. Trump explicitly linked the release of Ukrainian security aid to the country’s willingness to conduct phony investigations of Trump rival Joe Biden. It is no mystery whose accounts are missing: Acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and former national security adviser John Bolton have a duty to testify.
