Trump impeachment: Republicans` unity at risk after Bolton revelations - live
(The Guardian United States)

Democrats push Republicans to support calling witnessesMitt Romney joins the Democrats´ pressure campaignSusan Collins and Lisa Murkowski likely to support requestHelp us cover the critical issues of 2020. Consider making a contribution 2.16pm GMT As Senate Republicans face scrutiny over whether they will support calling John Bolton to testify, the manuscript of the former national security adviser´s book continues to make news.According to the New York Times, Bolton writes in the book that he had a conversation last year with attorney general Bill Barr about whether Trump was granting favors to autocratic leaders in countries like Turkey and China. Mr. Barr responded by pointing to a pair of Justice Department investigations of companies in those countries and said he was worried that Mr. Trump had created the appearance that he had undue influence over what would typically be independent inquiries, according to the manuscript. Backing up his point, Mr. Barr mentioned conversations Mr. Trump had with the leaders, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey and President Xi Jinping of China.Mr. Bolton´s account underscores the fact that the unease about Mr. Trump´s seeming embrace of authoritarian leaders, long expressed by experts and his opponents, also existed among some of the senior cabinet officers entrusted by the president to carry out his foreign policy and national security agendas.DOJ statement in response to tonight´s NYT story on John Bolton and Attorney General Barr. pic.twitter.com/WzekTSqY0f 1.47pm GMT Good morning, live blog readers!The impeachment trial of Donald Trump will continue today, as the president´s lawyers conclude their opening arguments. Continue reading...