Donald Trump just gave away that he wants this over with

| 5:13 pm EST January 24, 2020
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Like the world’s worst poker player, Donald Trump just keeps giving away his hand. When he leaked to the media last night that he’d privately threatened Republican Senators if they dared to vote for witnesses against him in the impeachment trial, he gave away that he was getting nervous about Republican Senators doing precisely that. This morning Trump gave away that he’s really worried about how quickly this is unraveling.

This morning Donald Trump tweeted that it “looks like my lawyers will be forced to start on Saturday, which is called Death Valley in T.V.” He’s correct in that no one watches the news on Saturday, and that it’s the worst time for his team to be presenting his defense. But Trump could easily convince the Senate to let him wait and begin his defense on Monday, because no one wants to work on a Saturday.

Instead, Trump has decided that he’s okay with his defense presentation getting fewer eyeballs, and thus having less potential impact, just so he can get the trial over with two days sooner. Yes, we know that he wants this over with by the State of the Union. But unless the Senate decides to call witnesses, he’s already set to clear that hurdle, whether he steps up the schedule by two days or not. In other words, this is entirely about witnesses.

Donald Trump is afraid that if he allows his impeachment trial to last a mere forty-eight additional hours, the growing sentiment in favor of witnesses could result in the Republican Senate actually voting to call witnesses. Trump is giving away that he wants this trial over with as quickly as possible – even at the expense of his own defense presentation – because he’s just that afraid of the whole thing getting away from him. If witnesses testify against Trump in this trial, then the trial is a loss for him, even if he’s acquitted.