Sen. Doug Jones, D-Ala., said Sunday he’d acquit President Donald Trump of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress if at his Senate impeachment trial, “those dots aren’t connected.”
In an interview on ABC News’ “This Week,” Jones said “I have been trying to read this.”
"I have been trying to see if the dots get connected,” he said. “If that is the case, I think it's a serious matter, I think it's an impeachable matter. But if those dots aren't connected and there are other explanations that I think are consistent with innocence, I will go that way too."
He added the charges demand “a full fair complete trial,” and that includes “witnesses, documents.”
But he dismissed warnings that if he votes for impeachment, he’d be politically doomed in his deep red state.
“The problem we have in America today… in the media… everyone wants to talk about political terms, political consequences terms,” he lamented.
“This is about the future of the presidency,” he said, noting considering a “pure political argument” is “not what I intend to do.”
Jone also said the delay by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., in handing over the impeachment articles has precedent.
“The Clinton articles of impeachment didn’t come to the Senate [until]… some six weeks later,” he said, adding: “She’s not going to hold these forever… it’s not unfair to ask what are the rules we are playing by.”