The impeachment trial against Trump will begin the week of February 8 in the Senate. The former president prepares his defense

The impeachment trial against former President Donald Trump will begin in the week of February 8, after a bipartisan agreement was reached, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced on Friday night.

The Democrat for New York also confirmed on the floor of the Senate that the House of Representatives will send

the indictment against the magnate for "incitement to insurrection"

next Monday

to start the process against him.

Meanwhile, the Upper House already has a hectic agenda: it

must confirm the nominees for the new Cabinet

and debate the coronavirus aid package proposed by the president, Joe Biden, or an alternative plan in case it fails.

Senators approved the nomination of General

Lloyd Austin as Secretary of Defense on

Friday

.

He is the first black person to hold that position.

The nomination of Janet L. Yellen as Secretary of the Treasury is pending.

For impeachment against Trump, Senate rules state that once the indictment is received, the

House must almost immediately transform into a court

and judge until a verdict is reached.

Schumer and Senate Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell have been negotiating the parameters of the retrial for days. 

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McConnell had proposed a mid-February start date

to give both parties time to properly prepare.

Trump, meanwhile, is just beginning to shape his legal team with the hiring of South Carolina-based attorney Butch Bowers, our sister network NBC News unveiled. 

Democrats involved in the planning have indicated that they are not entirely opposed to giving the Trump team some time, for fairness, and to give more time to pending hearings for the new administration.

Democrats are in control, but not absolute

Democrats formally regained control of the Senate this week, following the inauguration of Georgia lawmakers Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, who won the elections in the second round in January.

But its majority is meager (they are tied at 50 votes with the Republicans, although the vice president, Kamala Harris, is a tiebreaker), which can seriously influence the margin of maneuver of the president, Joe Biden. 

In any case, that advantage can be decisive in the many vital tasks that lie ahead, from the confirmation of the members of the new administration to the impeachment of former President Donald Trump or the approval of the new economic stimulus package proposal. against the $ 1.9 trillion coronavirus crisis, about which both Republican and Democratic senators have already raised doubts.

Before Biden took office, his advisers were in contact with Republican lawmakers to get swift approval of the economic bailout plan proposed by the new Administration a few days ago.

This, according to the informative website Politico, did not like many Democrats.

In the House of Representatives, meanwhile, a more limited proposal is brewing that includes

stimulus checks of $ 1,400

and aid for the rapid distribution of vaccines, in case the stimulus package of 1.9 billion does not achieve endorsement. of the Senate. 

Cabinet confirmation

Biden took office Wednesday without any of his Cabinet agencies being led by secretaries he trusted, confirmed by the Senate.

In anticipation of this delay, the transition team appointed the heads of the main government agencies on a provisional basis.

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Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Thursday that

the Senate's priority is to confirm

Biden's

Cabinet nominees

.

He added that it is of utmost importance to have a national security team as soon as possible, as well as key officials to respond to the economic and health crises caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Pete Buttigieg, nominated for Secretary of Transportation, attended a hearing Thursday before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation for his confirmation in office.

Buttigieg, a former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, and a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate, would be the

first openly LGBTQ Cabinet member.

The same happened with Lloyd J. Austin III, for whom Congress approved a special exemption this Thursday that will allow him to assume the position of Secretary of Defense.

Avril Haines was confirmed this Wednesday as director of National Intelligence.

He is the first Joe Biden Cabinet official to be approved by the Upper House.

“We appreciate the bipartisan cooperation in getting his confirmation.

We should continue in that spirit, ”said Schumer.

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Due to 

objections from Republicans

, four other confirmations were still pending Wednesday: Yellen and Austin;

and Alejandro Mayorkas as Secretary of National Security;

and Anthony Blinken as secretary of state.

Impeachment against Trump, with some support

There is a small group of Republicans who find it necessary to hold Trump accountable for his incitement in the violent events that occurred on January 6 on Capitol Hill.

But others avoid condemning his actions, arguing that going ahead with the trial would be damaging and would further divide the country. 

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“The president committed an act of incitement to insurrection.

I don't think it's very unifying that we forget it and move on.

This is not how it is unified

, "Pelosi said at a press conference. 

With information from

CNN, The Washintong Post, Politico, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.