Senate GOP rejects last-ditch attempt to subpoena Bolton, Mulvaney

Senate Republicans on Friday night rejected a last-ditch effort to subpoena former national security adviser John Bolton and acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney.

The back-to-back votes, forced by Democrats, marked an 11th hour effort to try to get witnesses included in President Trump’s impeachment trial.

The move came after the Senate voted to reject a mid-trial effort to allow for witnesses and documents in a 51-49 vote, falling short of the simple majority needed.

Democrats’ first measure on Friday night would have subpoenaed four officials including Bolton, Mulvaney, Mulvaney’s adviser Robert Blair and Michael Duffey, an Office of Management and Budget (OMB) official. 

It also would have compelled the White House, OMB, Defense Department and State Department to hand over documents related to Trump’s decision to delay $391 million in aid to Ukraine.

The Senate tabled that measure, effectively pigeonholing it, in a party-line vote. 

The second would have specifically subpoenaed only Bolton. The former national security adviser alleges, in a forthcoming memoir, that Trump directly tied the Ukraine aid to the country helping with investigations into Democrats, including the Bidens. 

The Senate voted 51-49 to table that proposal, with Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Mitt Romney (R-Utah) supporting the Democratic amendment. 

The two measures were offered as amendments to a resolution from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) that outlines how the Senate ends Trump’s impeachment trial. 

Under a deal struck by Republicans, the Senate is expected to pass the resolution Friday. The impeachment trial will then adjourn until Monday when both House managers and Trump’s legal team will get two hours each to make their closing arguments. 

The final votes of the impeachment trial will occur on Wednesday under the GOP deal. 

Democrats are expected to vote in lockstep against the resolution that sets up the end of the trial after they failed to win over four GOP senators to support their request for documents.