George Conway argues impeachment effort doesn’t need a ‘smoking gun’

Conservative lawyer George Conway argued Monday that House Democrats do not need to uncover a so-called smoking gun in their impeachment hearings over President Trump’s dealings with Ukraine in order to decide if he should be removed from office.

In a tweet, Conway argued that to build a successful case for impeachment in the House that would proceed to a trial in the Senate, Democrats merely needed to uncover evidence pointing to an abuse of power by the president, which he said is already available.

1. For impeachment and removal you don’t need a smoking gun, just evidence that proves the point, directly, circumstantially or otherwise.

2. And you don’t need a quid pro quo—just abuse of power.

3. That said, there’s plenty of smoking-gun evidence here of quid pro quo. https://t.co/3u4oqTOULZ

— George Conway (@gtconway3d) December 2, 2019

Conway, whose wife Kellyanne Conway serves as Trump’s White House counselor, is a vocal critic of the president and has publicly urged his removal through impeachment or other means.

House Democrats have sought to prove that Trump withheld aid to Ukraine over his requests for investigations into former Vice President Joe Biden (D) and his son Hunter Biden, which they argue amounted to a solicitation for foreign assistance in the 2020 election.