President Donald Trump insisted Friday that he wants a trial in the Senate, and he wants to call House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff as the first witness.
But he doesn't expect an impeachment based on actions concerning Ukraine because there is "absolutely nothing" impeachable against him, including his telephone call with Ukraine's president.
"Frankly, I want a trial," Trump said in a lengthy phone interview with Fox News' "Fox and Friends," referring to the lineup of witnesses speaking in the public impeachment hearings this week as "shifty Schiffs."
But when asked if that means he expects an impeachment, Trump insisted "I don't expect it. I don't expect it."
With the impeachment inquiry, though, Trump insisted that there "was no due process. You can't have lawyers. We couldn't have any witness. We wanted to call the whistleblower...I want to see Adam Schiff testify about the whistleblower, who is a fake whistleblower."
He added that he knows "exactly who" the whistleblower is, and "everybody does."
"The whistleblower, in my opinion, is a political operative, just like his lawyer who is one of the worst people in Washington," said Trump.
But Democrats should "never, ever impeach," said Trump.
"There should never be an impeachment," he said. "This is not an impeachment. That phone call was totally appropriate, OK, totally. But, assuming these people are as sleazy as they are, and (House Speaker) Nancy Pelosi is totally incompetent, she's lost absolutely, lost, she doesn't know what she's doing. She hasn't done anything. She can't get anything approved."
He went on to describe Schiff as a "nut job" who "made up" the contents of the telephone call.
"I released the transcript of the call immediately," said Trump. "Had I not done that, I would have had a big problem. A big problem because they all lied about my call. My call was perfect. If you heard Adam Schiff's made-up version of my call, I mean it was the worst thing I ever heard."
However, Schiff made the comments in the halls of Congress so "he has immunity. I can't sue him," Trump added. "The Republican Party can't sue him."
Meanwhile, the Republican Party has "never been more unified," said Trump.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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