Trump will NOT testify at his impeachment trial, says his lawyer who accuses Dems of a 'publicity stunt' for demanding he give evidence to Senate

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House impeachment managers asked Donald Trump to testify under oath in his impeachment trial next week but a lawyer for the former president said 'no' to the request and called it a 'publicity stunt.'

Trump adviser Jason Miller told DailyMail.com that 'the president will not testify in an unconstitutional proceeding.' 

And Trump attorney Bruce Castor told NBC News that 'no' the former president would not take the stand and he called the letter a 'publicity stunt.'   

Lead Impeachment Manager Rep. Jamie Raskin sent a letter to Trump on Thursday, asking he provide testimony under oath, either before or during the Senate impeachment trial, about his conduct on January 6, the day his MAGA supporters stormed the Capitol.

Trump attorneys Castor and David Schoen acknowledged receipt of what they called Democrats 'latest public relations stunt' and accused the managers of playing games.

'Your letter only confirms what is known to everyone: you cannot prove your allegations against the 45th president of the United States, who is now a private citizen,' they wrote in their response. 

'The use of our constitution to bring a purported impeachment proceeding is much too serious to try to play these games,' they added.

Raskin had requested a response from Trump's team by no later than Friday, February 5, 2021 at 5 pm.

The surprise move to invite Trump to testify indicates they intend to aggressively prosecute the former president.  The House managers do not have independent authority to subpoena Trump so they must invite him to make his case. 

'In light of your disputing these factual allegations, I write to invite you to provide testimony under oath, either before or during the Senate impeachment trial, concerning your conduct on January 6, 2021. We would propose that you provide your testimony (of course including cross-examination) as early as Monday, February 8, 2021, and not later than Thursday, February 11, 2021. We would be pleased to arrange such testimony at a mutually convenient time and place,' Raskin wrote.

'If you decline this invitation, we reserve any and all rights, including the right to establish at trial that your refusal to testify supports a strong adverse inference regarding your actions (and inaction) on January 6, 2021,' Raskin noted. 

House impeachment managers asked former President Donald Trump to testify under oath in his impeachment trial next week

Lead Impeachment Manager Jamie Raskin wrote that if Trump declines to testify 'we reserve any and all rights, including the right to establish at trial that your refusal to testify supports a strong adverse inference regarding your actions (and inaction) on January 6, 2021'

The impeachment trial begins Tuesday in the Senate. All 100 senators were sworn in as jurors last week when the impeachment article was formally presented to the upper chamber. 

Some Democratic senators questioned the decision to have Trump testify. 

Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia said it would be a 'dog and pony show.'

And Senator Chris Coons of Delaware, a close alley of President Joe Biden, called Trump testifying a 'terrible idea.' When asked why, he responded: 'Have you met President Trump?'

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a close ally of Trump, threatened to bring in the FBI to testify if Democrats called witnesses. 

'If you open that can of worms, we'll want the FBI to come in and tell us about how people pre-planned this attack and what happened with the security footprint at the Capitol,' Graham said on Fox News earlier this week.

'You open up Pandora's Box if you call one witness,' he added.

Graham speaks to Trump regularly and is the liaison between the former president and Senate Republicans. 

He told reporters on Capitol Hill Thursday afternoon he last spoke to the former president a few days ago.

'He's in pretty good spirits. Trying to get adjusted to his new life and uh, I think very focused on 2022, trying to help us come back,' Graham said.  

He said the House managers calling on Trump to testify was 'obviously a political ploy on their part' and pointed out they could have asked Trump to testify in the House before they held the impeachment vote. 

He said he didn't think Trump would testify. 

'No, I don't think that would be in anybody's interest,' he said. 'Just cause it's just a nightmare for the country to do this, it's just a political showboat move to do this.' 

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was asked about Graham's threat to call in the FBI at her press conference on Thursday morning dismissed the question.

'Your question is a waste of time,' she said.  

President Trump spoke to a rally outside the White House the morning of the January 6th insurrection, where he encouraged his supporters to march on Capitol Hill where lawmakers were going to certify Joe Biden's election victory.

The pro-Trump crowd stormed the Capitol, interrupted the certification process and caused a riot that left five people dead and a wake of destruction in their path. 

Trump attorney Bruce Castor revealed Trump will use a  free speech defense. He and Schoen submitted a legal brief on Tuesday that used more formal language to deny the charge of 'incitement of insurrection.' 

'It is denied that the 45th President engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the United States,' Trump's lawyers wrote. 

In their legal brief, Trump's lawyers defended some of the president's most incendiary language, while trying to soften his claims that the election was 'stolen' and 'rigged.' 

They admit that 'persons unlawfully breached and vandalized the Capitol,' according to the brief. But it calls the phrase 'Seditions acts' brought by Democrats a 'term of art that he denies.'

The brief denies that Trump 'incited the crowd to engage in destructive behavior' and denied the phrase 'if you don't fight like hell you're not going to have a country anymore' had 'anything to do with the action at the Capitol as it was clearly about the need to fight for election security in general.' 

President Trump spoke to a rally of his supporters the morning of the MAGA riot, encouraging them to march on the Capitol 

The January 6th insurrection left five people dead

Many of the rioters were armed with weapons including axes, baseball bats, and flag poles. Several have identified Trump himself as inspiring their actions. Federal authorities are also investigating militia groups who met before Trump spoke and organized travel in advance of the Jan. 6 rally, which took place the day Congress met to count the electoral votes. 

The House moved quickly to impeach Trump on one article - violating his oath of office 'by inciting violence against the Government of the United States.' Ten House Republicans crossed over to join Democrats in voting for the impeachment, making Trump the only president in U.S. history to be impeached twice.

At least 17 Republican would need to join all 50 Democrats in the evenly divided Senate for Trump to be convicted, a two-thirds threshold that appears unlikely to be reached. 

There was a debate among scholars over whether the Senate can hold a trial for Trump since he left office on January 20.

Trump's defense team is expected to argue the impeachment trial is unconstitutional.

A conviction could bare Trump from every holding federal office again - which would rule out a 2024 presidential bid - but there seems little appetite among Senate Republicans to convict the former president. 

Senator Rand Paul last week proposed a resolution calling the trial unconstitutional. It didn't pass the Senate but 45 GOP senators joined his effort, effectively signalling Trump will be acquitted.