Senate impeachment trial of President Trump Day 1: Over 12 hours of debate, ‘pettifogging’ and foul language

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Wednesday, January 22, 2020

In this screengrab taken from a Senate Television webcast, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts presides over impeachment proceedings for U.S. President Donald Trump in the Senate at the U.S. Capitol on January 21, 2020, in Washington, D.C. | Senate Television via Getty Images

Chief Justice John Roberts denounces rhetoric of both sides

U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, who is presiding over the trial, admonished both sides on the first day over their behavior.

“It is appropriate at this point for me to admonish both the House managers and the president's counsel in equal terms to remember that they are addressing the world's greatest deliberative body,” he said.

“One reason it has earned that title is because its members avoid speaking in a manner, and using language, that is not conducive to civil discourse.”

Roberts went on to reference the 1905 impeachment trial of U.S. District Court Judge Charles Swayne, in which a senator objected to a manager using the word “pettifogging,” noting that “the presiding officer said the word ought not to have been used.”

“I don't think we need to aspire to that high a standard, but I do think those addressing the Senate should remember where they are,” Roberts said.