John Roberts may be leading the Senate impeachment trial, but this woman is shaping it

[babylonsister]

John Roberts may be leading the Senate impeachment trial, but this woman is shaping it
Elizabeth MacDonough, the first female Senate parliamentarian, will be advising the chief justice on how to address arcane procedural questions.
By DARREN SAMUELSOHN
01/13/2020 05:10 AM EST


In a small Capitol Hill office after President Donald Trump had been impeached and official Washington bolted town for the holidays, a three-person team gathered to dig through musty old law books and congressional records.

The Senate parliamentarian, Elizabeth MacDonough, and her aides were scrambling to prepare for an event with little precedent in American history — the impeachment trial of a U.S. president. In just a few weeks, they would have to advise Chief Justice John Roberts on how to run that trial and address a slew of arcane procedural questions that few — if any — had ever been asked. Their answers, they knew, could influence how the historic event unfolded.

They read everything they could find on the subject, including transcripts and other historic materials from the two previous impeachment trials of U.S. presidents, as well as the work the office did in preparation for a case against Richard Nixon that didn’t happen because of his 1974 resignation.

They also looked at 17 other impeachment cases involving judges and other government officials dating to the John Adams administration. They made notes and downloaded all manner of material onto the laptops and internal systems they would be able to bring to the Senate floor and access at a moment’s notice.

“They’re up to their eyeballs in preparations,” said Alan Frumin, a former Senate parliamentarian and one of MacDonough’s mentors.

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MacDonough, 53, will bring to her assignment more than 20 years of Capitol Hill experience as a non-partisan career government employee, going all the way back to her days in the Senate Library. She started as an assistant in the parliamentarian’s office just a few months after President Bill Clinton survived his own Senate impeachment trial and rose to become the first female Senate parliamentarian in U.S. history. Along the way, MacDonough has played pivotal roles helping senators navigate vicious debates over taxes, government shutdowns and health care. She helped the upper chamber work through the controversial decision to remove the filibuster as a weapon to block judicial nominations.

"I’ve been here with many, many parliamentarians. All were good. But she’s the best."

- Vermont Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy

more...

https://www.politico.com/news/2020/01/13/john-roberts-senate-impeachment-whisperer-098050

[babylonsister]

1. This made me feel better. nt

[gratuitous]

2. A conscientious and meticulous person who takes her job seriously?

McConnell will have to get her cut out of any substantive role in the trial toot fuckin' sweet.

[babylonsister]

3. Ideally, yes, but I don't know that he has that capability. nt

[crickets]

4. Good to know, thanks. K&R