Two of the four lawyers who had joined the team defending Donald Trump in his upcoming impeachment trial, scheduled to start in nine days, have abruptly quit, Politico reports.
Butch Bowers and Deborah Barbier, both of Columbia, South Carolina, have left the team according a person close to the defense team. They described the split as a “mutual decision.”
Bowers was announced as lead counsel just eight days ago, and Barbier joined earlier this week. Bowers is an election law specialist, while Barbier is a former federal prosecutor.
Two other South Carolina attorneys, Greg Harris and Johnny Gasser, have reportedly joined the defense team according to news accounts, but neither they nor the Trump camp have confirmed that. Josh Howard, a North Carolina lawyers who is the son of one of Nixon’s impeachment lawyers, is also reportedly working for Trump.
Trump has had difficulty finding lawyers to represent him. Many major law firms are reluctant to get involved with a case having to do with the volatile issue of the domestic terrorist attack at the Capitol on January 6th which left five dead and resulted in the suicides of two police officers. Others do not want to be associated with Trump’s toxic brand, while still others do not think they can recoup fees from Trump, who famously refuses to pay bills.