WASHINGTON -- Democrat Adam Schiff stood on the Senate floor as an impeachment manager in the House of Representatives nearly five years ago and made a passionate case that Donald Trump should be removed from office for abusing the power of the presidency. "If the good doesn't matter, we're lost," he told senators, his voice cracking at one point.
The Republican-led Senate was not convinced, and neither were the senators who voted for acquittal of Trump on the Democratic-led impeachment charge over his dealings with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump would survive a second impeachment a year later after his supporters stormed the Capitol and tried to overturn his defeat.
Now Trump is back at the White House, politically stronger than ever and with a firm grip on what is a united Republican Congress. And Schiff, one of Trump's biggest opponents, will be sworn in in the Senate on Monday as part of a Democratic caucus that is moving toward minority status and has so far been reluctant to oppose the returning president.
"I think being out there and letting people get to know me and pushing the envelope a little bit helps overcome some of the stereotypes," Schiff said regarding conservative media focus when he challenged Trump during his first term.
Schiff will be sworn in weeks before the new Congress convenes on Jan. 3 as he fills the seat of former Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who died last year. He will enter alongside Andy Kim from New Jersey, serving after Bob Menendez's resignation following bribery charges.
"Feinstein was able to do things at once: working across party lines while standing up for people's rights," Schiff told The Associated Press ahead of his swearing-in.
Democratic Sen. Brian Schatz noted that Schiff has "the right approach" by asking questions rather than expressing opinions at every opportunity: "Everyone knows his abilities."
Despite previous censure by Republicans for investigations into Trump's ties with Russia, Schiff continues challenging Trump publicly while connecting with colleagues like Tim Sheehy on shared legislative interests such as wildfire legislation important to both states.
"I don't think it was a hurtful introduction," Schiff reflected on interactions during past trials where some Republicans expressed surprise at his demeanor compared to media portrayals.