Richard Painter, who served as former President George W. Bush's top ethics lawyer, called Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell a 'perjurer' after the senator took an oath swearing impartiality in the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump.
The text of the oath McConnell took Thursday, which was administered by Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, offers a clear pledge to remain impartial:"I solemnly swear that in all things appertaining to the trial of the impeachment of President Donald J. Trump, now pending, I will do impartial justice according to the Constitution and laws, So help me God."
Painter is a longtime Trump critic and one of several legal experts who have been critical of McConnell's actions and statements regarding the impeachment trial. He voiced his displeasure with the majority leader when he announced he would refuse to be impartial shortly after Trump was impeached in December.
"For Mitch McConnell to say he's working with the White House, coordinating with the defendant in this trial before the trial has even begun is atrocious,"Painter during a CNN panel discussion."He may think he's a judge impaneling an all-white jury for a Klansman trial in Mississippi in 1965. That's not the kind of trial we have."
"It shouldn't be partisan. It should be about America. Our loyalty is to the United States of America, and senators take an oath to their country," Painter added.
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