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As Impeachment Trial Begins And Iowa Creeps Closer, The Political Junkie Shares His Take

WUNC News | By Frank Stasio,
Amanda Magnus
Published January 24, 2020 at 12:35 PM EST
In this image from video, House impeachment manager Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., speaks during the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump in the Senate at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2020.
In this image from video, House impeachment manager Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., speaks during the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump in the Senate at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2020.
In this image from video, House impeachment manager Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., speaks during the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump in the Senate at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2020.
Credit (Senate Television via AP)
In this image from video, House impeachment manager Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., speaks during the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump in the Senate at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2020.

This week the U.S. Senate formally began the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump — the third such trial in American history. Democrats made their arguments this week, with the president’s lawyers making their case starting on Saturday. Political Junkie Ken Rudin shares his analysis of the trial so far with host Frank Stasio. Host Frank Stasio and Political Junkie Ken Rudin discuss the political news of the week.

Democrats only need four Republican senators to side with them to allow witnesses and documents in the trial, and Rudin highlights which members of the GOP he is watching to break ranks on this issue. Plus, the impeachment trial means that three top U.S. senators vying for the Democratic presidential nomination are stuck in Washington D.C. as the Iowa Democratic caucuses loom: Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota. How will this time away from the front lines of the campaign affect these candidates? Rudin shares his thoughts on this and other top news out of Capitol Hill.

Copyright 2020 North Carolina Public Radio
Frank Stasio
Longtime NPR correspondent Frank Stasio was named permanent host of The State of Things in June 2006. A native of Buffalo, Frank has been in radio since the age of 19. He began his public radio career at WOI in Ames, Iowa, where he was a magazine show anchor and the station's News Director.
See stories by Frank Stasio
Amanda Magnus
Amanda Magnus grew up in Maryland and went to high school in Baltimore. She became interested in radio after an elective course in the NYU journalism department. She got her start at Sirius XM Satellite Radio, but she knew public radio was for her when she interned at WNYC. She later moved to Madison, where she worked at Wisconsin Public Radio for six years. In her time there, she helped create an afternoon drive news magazine show, called Central Time. She also produced several series, including one on Native American life in Wisconsin. She spends her free time running, hiking, and roller skating. She also loves scary movies.
See stories by Amanda Magnus