Durango High School student Colton Williams witnessed history in the making Friday in Washington, D.C., where Democrats presented their third day of opening arguments in the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump.
Williams wanted to learn how the impeachment trial process works, and “what I can do to help the future,” he said in a telephone interview Friday with The Durango Herald.
It is important for young adults to pay attention to this moment in history, he said, so they can understand how and why government officials can and should be held accountable.
Williams said he went into the hearing trying to “maintain a neutral position.” He said the Democrats had strong arguments for why Trump violated the Constitution, and why more information needs to be released to the public, but he did not get to hear a response from Republicans or Trump’s defense team.
Williams said it is problematic if witnesses are not called to testify in the trial, and if relevant documents are not released by the White House.
Sitting on the Senate floor made the situation more real, and the feeling in the room was more serious and somber than watching the impeachment trial on television, Williams said.
The key focus of Friday’s arguments was the accusation that Trump forced Ukraine’s president to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden, a front-runner in the Democratic presidential primaries, and Biden’s son. Democrats allege Trump withheld military aid from Ukraine until they provided him with information on Biden, Williams said.
Democrats say Trump wanted damaging information on Biden to undermine him in the general presidential election in November.
“Because we withheld aid, we are loosening foreign relations with Ukraine,” and weakening relations means Russia might increase military action in Ukraine, Williams said.
It was Williams’ second time to the nation’s capital. The previous summer, he traveled to Washington for a 12-day conference about national security.
Williams said he wants to pursue a career in cybersecurity and study computer science in college.
He will be in Washington until Sunday and plans to visit museums like the National Air and Space Museum.
Emily Hayes is a graduate student at American University in Washington, D.C., and an intern for The Durango Herald.
