While some Democratic presidential candidates were in Washington, D.C., for the Senate’s impeachment trial of President Donald Trump, former Vice President Joe Biden was campaigning in Iowa.
In an interview on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” on Wednesday, Biden said he was busy campaigning, but added that he was able to catch a few moments of the trial in reruns.
After watching some clips featuring members of Trump’s legal defense team, Biden said he was “embarrassed for the institution.”
“I have a great respect and reverence for the Senate — for real. And I was embarrassed for the institution. I was there for a long time, Joe, and I never saw anything like that.”
Watch his comments below:
"I have a great respect and reverence for the Senate for real. I was embarrassed for the institution. I was there for a long time and I never saw anything quite like that." —@JoeBiden pic.twitter.com/RcHLguGG4g
— Morning Joe (@Morning_Joe) January 22, 2020
As the Senate trial continued, the impeachment managers and Trump’s defense team got in a heated exchange at one point, prompting Chief Justice John Roberts to admonish them for their rhetoric, as IJR previously reported.
“I think It is appropriate at this point for me to admonish both the House managers and president’s counsel in equal terms to remember that they are addressing the world’s greatest deliberative body.”
The exchange that prompted Roberts’ comments came after Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) said that senators who blocked a request to subpoena new witnesses would be participating in a “cover-up.”
That led White House Counsel Pat Cipollone to call on Nadler to apologize for “making false allegations.”