Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) “gave up” on following former President Donald Trump’s attorney after he could not “understand his line of thinking.”
During an appearance on CNN’s “New Day” on Wednesday, host John Berman asked Durbin what he has heard from Republicans about the proceedings.
“Disappointment. They really expected a spirited defense of the president, and that didn’t happen,” Durbin said, adding, “I wanted to take notes to follow, and I just gave up on Mr. Castor. I couldn’t understand his line of thinking.”
He suggested Castor could have been the “good cop” and Trump’s other attorney David Schoen was the “bad cop.”
Watch his interview below:
Republicans "really expected a spirited defense of the [former] President, and it didn't happen," @SenatorDurbin said about day one of the Senate impeachment trial. "I wanted to take notes to follow, and I just gave up on Mr. Castor. I couldn't understand his line of thinking." pic.twitter.com/ZX2DBS4asP
— CNN This Morning with Kasie Hunt (@CNNThisMorning) February 10, 2021
“You just can’t expect to stand up in front of a group like that and read for an hour and expect to make an impact,” Durbin said.
He went on to praise the House managers for their performance.
“I really believe that the House managers did a professional job, the video was just an amazing piece of work to start this and the arguments they made were understandable,” Durbin explained.
Berman asked Durbin what he thinks Trump’s lawyers need to do to prove the case.
“I’m not sure where they’re going with this. It’s not a very strong position and it’s understandable why they’ve had a tough time enlisting lawyers to argue it,” Durbin replied.
After harsh criticism from a group of Republican senators, Trump’s attorney David Schoen said he will “have to do better next time,” as IJR reported.
Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) called Trump’s defense team “incompetent and basically pretty pathetic.”
She claimed the House managers were successful in their approach.
“Watching these images, I think all of us were brought to tears,” she said, “I know I was.”
Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) delivered an emotional speech during the trial’s opening and detailed his experience during the riots at the U.S. Capitol, as IJR reported.