>> Ed: JOHN ROBERTS WITH A LOT

OF TREES BEHIND THEM THERE

INSTANTLY DAVOS.

JOHN, THANK YOU.

>> Sandra: MEANWHILE, HOUSE

REPUBLICANS PLANNING TO JOIN THE

PRESIDENT'S DEFENSE TEAM.

AMONG THEM TEXAS CONGRESSMAN

JOHN RATCLIFFE.

HE KNEW AND JUST NOW AS OUR

GUEST THIS MORNING.

GOOD MORNING TO YOU AND

THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE.

WHAT EXACTLY WILL YOU DO IN THIS

NEW ROLE?

>> WELL, IT WAS ANNOUNCED LAST

NIGHT, SMITTY, BUT REALLY FOR

THE LAST FEW WEEKS I'VE BEEN

WORKING WITH THE WHITE HOUSE

COUNSEL HELPING THEM PREPARE THE

LEGAL BRIEFS THAT ARE BEING

SUBMITTED IN THE TRIAL AND

PREPARING THE ORAL ARGUMENTS

THAT WILL BE PRESENTED LATER

THIS WEEK.

I WAS ONE OF A FEW MEMBERS THAT

WAS INVOLVED IN BOTH PHASES OF

THE IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY BEFORE

THE HOUSE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE

AND THE HOUSE JUDICIARY

COMMITTEE.

THERE'S A LOT OF INFORMATION

THERE, SO I'M GOING TO CONTINUE

TO BE AS MUCH OF A RESOURCE FOR

THE PRESIDENT'S LAWYERS AS I CAN

BE OVER THIS TRIAL.

>> Sandra: TO BE CLEAR,

THOUGH, YOU WON'T HAVE ANY ROLE

IN SPEAKING ON THE SENATE FLOOR?

>> THAT HASN'T BEEN FINALLY

DETERMINED YET.

I THINK THAT'S CURRENTLY THE

PLAN.

>> Sandra: CURRENTLY THE PLAN

NOT TO?

>> CURRENTLY THE PLAN NOT TO.

BUT YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT'S GOING

TO HAPPEN DURING A TRIAL.

PART OF THE REASON WE ARE THERE

IS TO HOLD ACCOUNTABLE SOME OF

THE HOUSE MANAGERS, IN

PARTICULAR THE LEAD HOUSE

MANAGER, ADAM SCHIFF, AND MAKE

SURE THE EVIDENCE IS PRESENTED

THE WAY IT OCCURRED IN THE

HOUSE.

IF THAT DOESN'T HAPPEN, THERE

MAY BE A CHANGE IN THE TRIAL

STRUCTURE.

>> Sandra: OF COURSE,

CONGRESSMAN, THAT'S WHY THERE'S

A DEBATE OF WITNESSES.

DEMOCRATS ARE MAKING THE CASE

THERE WAS INFORMATION PRESENTED

AFTER THE VOTE HAPPENED IN THE

HOUSE ON THE ARTICLES OF

IMPEACHMENT.

WHAT'S GOING HAPPEN WITH THAT

DEBATE ULTIMATELY, AND WHAT IS

YOUR DEFENSE TO NOT HAVE

WITNESSES CALLED?

>> I DON'T THINK THERE WILL BE

ANY WITNESSES CALLED.

THERE ISN'T A WITNESS THAT CAN

BE CALLED THAT CAN FIX THIS

PROCESS.

THERE ISN'T A WITNESS ON EITHER

SIDE YOU CAN CALL THAT CAN

INJECT FAIRNESS AND DUE PROCESS

INTO A PROCESS THAT HAD NONE.

I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS YOUR

LISTENERS ARE GOING TO HEAR THIS

WEEK IS A COMPARISON OF WHAT

HAPPENED, THE DISPARITY IN THE

WAY PRESIDENT CLINTON AND

PRESIDENT NIXON WERE TREATED

DURING THEIR IMPEACHMENT

INQUIRIES AS OPPOSED TO

PRESIDENT TRUMP THE NIXON AND

CLINTON LAWYERS WERE ALLOWED TO

PARTICIPATE EVERY SINGLE DAY

FROM THE BEGINNING TO THE END.

THEY WERE ALLOWED TO REVIEW

EVIDENCE, SUGGEST EVIDENCE, TO

CALL WITNESSES, AND

CROSS-EXAMINE WITNESSES.

BY COMPARISON, PRESIDENT TRUMP

DURING HIS 78-DAY IMPEACHMENT

INQUIRY, HIS LAWYERS WERE

FORBIDDEN FROM PARTICIPATING FOR

THE FIRST 71 OF A 78-DAY

PROCESS.

NOT ALLOWED TO CALL WITNESSES,

CROSS-EXAMINE WITNESSES, BE

THERE FOR THE PRESENTATION OR

REVIEW OF EVIDENCE.

THAT IS A LACK OF DUE PROCESS

AND FAIRNESS THAT I THINK ALL

SENATORS, REPUBLICAN AND

DEMOCRAT, ARE GOING TO BE

SURPRISED TO LEARN.

I THINK AS A RESULT OF THAT THEY

ARE NOT GOING TO WANT TO HEAR

ANY WITNESSES, BECAUSE THE

SENATE ISN'T GOING TO BE ABLE TO

FIX WHAT HAPPENED IN THE HOUSE.

>> Sandra: I WANT TO THROW UP

ON THE SCREEN THE TWEET LAST

NIGHT AFTER IT WAS ANNOUNCED HE

WOULD BE A NEW MEMBER OF THE

PRESIDENT'S DEFENSE TEAM.

HE SAID, "I TOOK THE OATH TO

DEFEND THE CONSTITUTION.

THIS IMPEACHMENT IS AN ASSAULT

ON DUE PROCESS.

IT'S AN ASSAULT ON THE

SEPARATION OF POWERS.

IT'S UNCONSTITUTIONAL.

I'M GRATEFUL FOR THE OPPORTUNITY

TO MAKE THAT CLEAR TO EVERY

AMERICAN DURING THE SENATE

TRIAL."

FOR YOUR PART, YOU WILL BE

CONTROLLING THE MESSAGING, YOU

WILL BE CONTROLLING THE DEFENSE

OF THIS TEAM.

HOW DO YOU LET YOUR STRATEGY?

WE ONLY KNOW WHAT WE KNOW.

WHAT ARE GOING TO BE THE

SURPRISES AS WE WATCH THIS ALL

BEGIN THIS AFTERNOON?

>> I THINK THE SENATE DEFENSE

TEAM, AS THEY PREPARE AND

PRESENT THIS, ARE GOING TO POINT

OUT THE FACT THAT, AGAIN, THE

IRONY OF THE HOUSE DEMOCRATS

WANTING TO IMPEACH A PRESIDENT

FOR OBSTRUCTING HOUSE DEMOCRATS

IN A 78-DAY PROCESS WHERE THEY

FORBIDDEN FROM PARTICIPATING FOR

THE FIRST 71 DAYS, PEOPLE ARE

GOING TO FIND IT IRONIC THAT

THE HOUSE DEMOCRATS ARE WANTING

TO IMPEACH FOR OBSTRUCTION OF

CONGRESS, A TERM OF THE FOUNDERS

REFERRED TO AS THE SEPARATION OF

POWERS.

THEY CAN'T MAKE CONSTITUTIONAL

ARGUMENTS BECAUSE THEY DON'T

HAVE ANY.

THIS IMPEACHMENT FAILS.

IT FEELS FACTUALLY, IT FEELS

LEGALLY, IT FEELS

CONSTITUTIONALLY.

THIS IS GOING TO BE LIKE KILLING

A FLY WITH A SLEDGEHAMMER.

THE HOUSE DEMOCRATS HAD A WEAK

CASE EVEN ON A SLANTED PLAYING

FIELD WHERE THEY MADE THE RULES,

CHANGE THE RULES, AND BROKE THE

WILL'S THEIR ADVANTAGE.

ON A LEVEL PLAYING FIELD IT'S

GOING TO GET UGLY.

I EXPECT A SHORT TRIAL, NO

WITNESSES, AND EARLY ACQUITTAL

FOR PRESIDENT TRUMP.

>> Sandra: THE MINORITY LEADER

CHUCK SCHUMER TOOK TO A

MICROPHONE LAST NIGHT TO SLAM

THOSE RULES LAID OUT BY

MITCH McCONNELL.

HERE'S THE SENATOR.

>> SENATOR McCONNELL'S

RESOLUTION IS A NATIONAL

DISGRACE.

HE IS SAYING THAT HE DOESN'T

WANT TO HEAR ANY OF THE EXISTING

EVIDENCE, AND HE DOESN'T WANT

ANY NEW EVIDENCE.

A TRIAL WHERE THERE IS NO

EVIDENCE, NO EXISTING RECORD,

AND NO NEW EVIDENCE, NO

WITNESSES, NO DOCUMENTS, THAT

ISN'T A TRIAL AT ALL.

IT IS A COVER-UP.

>> Sandra: AS A FORMER

PROSECUTOR AND NOW NEW MEMBER OF

THE PRESIDENT'S DEFENSE TEAM,

HOW DO YOU COUNTER THAT,

CONGRESSMAN?

>> ACTUALLY, I AGREE WITH

CHUCK SCHUMER THAT THERE CAN'T

BE A FAIR TRIAL AND THAT THERE

WAS A COVER-UP, BUT NOT FOR THE

REASONS THAT HE THINKS.

THE COVER OF HAPPENED, WHO

EVERYONE KNOWS WAS NOT TRUTHFUL

ABOUT HIS CONTACT WITH THE

WHISTLE-BLOWER, WHAT THEY DON'T

KNOW IS THAT THE WHISTLE-BLOWER

WAS NOT TRUTHFUL UNDER OATH

ABOUT HIS CONTACTS WITH

CONGRESSMAN SCHIFF.

AND THERE IS A TRANSCRIPT THAT

REFLECTS THAT.

IT'S THE INSPECTOR GENERAL'S

TRANSCRIPT.

IT'S THE ONLY 1 OUT OF 18

TRANSCRIPTS THAT HAS NOT BEEN

RELEASED BY CONGRESSMAN SCHIFF.

SO THERE IS A COVER-UP THERE,

AND THAT IS WHAT PREVENTS A FAIR

TRIAL.

IF THE PERSON CHARGED DOMINIC IN

CHARGE OF THE SOLICITATION WAS

JUDGE, JURY, PROSECUTOR.

THESE ARE ADAM SCHIFF'S FACTS.

YOU CAN'T LEAVE A MAGIC WAND AND

INJECT FAIRNESS INTO A PROCESS

THAT A CONFLICTED WITNESS

CONTROLLED FROM BEGINNING TO END

-- I THINK EVERY SENATOR,

REPUBLICAN AND DEMOCRAT IS GOING

TO COME TO THE REALIZATION.

EARLY ON THERE'S GOING TO BE A

MOTION TO ACQUIT

PRESIDENT TRUMP, AND I THINK

THAT'S GOING TO BE SUPPORTED ON