U.S. Senate to Pause Trump Impeachment Trial for Shabbos

The U.S. Senate will pause former President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial from Friday evening to Saturday evening this week to honor a request by a Trump attorney who is shomer Shabbos, a spokesman for Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said on Sunday.

“We respect their request and of course will accommodate it,” Schumer spokesman Justin Goodman said in a statement.

Trump attorney David Schoen sent a letter to Schumer and other top senators on Tuesday requesting impeachment proceedings be paused during Shabbos.

The one-day delay raises questions about how long it will take to finish the trial, which is set to begin in the Senate on Tuesday. The Senate is not currently scheduled to be in session during the week of Feb. 15.

While Democrats and Republicans have said they hope to resolve the impeachment trial quickly, President Joe Biden is simultaneously trying to win approval for his nominees in the Senate and trying to push a $1.9 trillion coronavirus economic relief package through Congress.

Discussions about the structure of the trial are ongoing, Goodman said on Sunday.