As former ambassador to Ukraine William Taylor made his opening statement earlier this week, over 30 Republican lawmakers sought to change the subject by barging their way into the Sensitive Compartmentalised Information Facility (SCIF). They brought their mobile phones – forbidden in such a secure facility – and refused to leave so investigators could begin interviewing Laura Cooper, the deputy assistant secretary of defence. They chanted “Let us in,” sat down and ordered some pizza.

After they left, the group stood in front of a bank of cameras so their putative spokesman, 37-year-old second-term representative Matt Gaetz, could shout about how unfair it is that the Democratic-controlled House is following rules laid out in 2015 (when Republicans controlled the chamber) by keeping members who aren’t part of the three investigating committees out of the depositions.

Of course, many of the members who stood behind Gaetz were members of those committees. But that wasn’t the point of the stunt. The point was to perform for their audience of one, with whom Gaetz and a number of them had met the day before.

And the audience responded, showing his gratitude in a tweet praising the group’s blatant security breach the next day. “Thank you to House Republicans for being tough, smart, and understanding in detail the greatest Witch Hunt in American History,” the president tweeted.

On Thursday, it was Senator Lindsey Graham’s turn to demonstrate his fealty by introducing a non-binding Senate resolution – co-sponsored by all but eight Senate Republicans – which he unveiled at an afternoon press conference.

“The purpose of the resolution is to let the house know that the process [they] are engaging in regarding the attempted impeachment of President Trump is out of bounds, is inconsistent with due process as we know it, it is a Star Chamber type inquiry, it is a substantial deviation from what the House has done in the past regarding impeachment of other presidents,” Graham said.

Lindsey Graham criticizes the impeachment inquiry: 'They've created a new process that I think is very dangerous for the country'

Like the other Trump defender, Graham’s concern was mainly with the closed-door depositions – despite the fact that he, as one of the House “managers” during the inquiry into then-president Bill Clinton, had conducted plenty of closed-door interviews of witnesses. Indeed, not only did Graham conduct similar proceedings during the Clinton impeachment, but Republicans on the House Benghazi select committee conducted more than 100 closed-door interviews when investigating former secretary of state Hillary Clinton.

When I asked Graham, a former air force prosecutor, if he would ever allow witnesses in one of his cases to see other witnesses testify and gain the ability to synchronise their stories, Graham gave a long, rambling answer which ended up invoking the investigation the Justice Department is currently conducting to examine the Trump-Russia probe.

I pointed out that the impeachment investigation is not about anything that happened in 2016. Graham replied: “Well, it is to me.”

One Democrat who I spoke to about the week’s events – Illinois senator Richard Durbin – suggested that his GOP colleagues’ actions were evidence of the weakness of Trump’s case after Taylor’s testimony blew away the “no quid pro quo” defence.

“After the testimony of ambassador Taylor, they were looking for some sort of theatrical presentation and I suppose that was the best they could find,” Durbin said, adding later that he understood where the Republicans were coming from. “Let me tell you, I’ve been in desperate political situations before and you just strike out at the pain,” he said. “When it was a president of my party, we talked about process all the time. But ultimately we had to face the substance, and ultimately, they will too.”

But some Republicans I spoke with were far less sympathetic. Paul Rosenzweig, who was one of Ken Starr’s deputies during the Clinton impeachment probe, had harsh words for the arguments put forth by Graham, Gaetz, and their GOP compatriots.

“Almost nothing that the Republicans have complained about in terms of process has any constitutional merit,” said Rosenzweig, now a senior fellow at the R Street Institute. “The Republicans on the Benghazi committee conducted dozens of closed-door depositions before they had open hearings, and I didn’t hear the Republicans complaining then. They are clearly trying to make a political point, but their political point really emphasises the fact that they have neither the law nor the facts on their side, so they have to invade a SCIF instead.”

Rosenzweig’s impressions of the evidence that has been publicly reported so far was equally blunt. “Ambassador Taylor’s testimony was particularly trenchant and, uh, adverse to the president’s interests, both in suggesting that most of what he’s been saying so far is untrue, and in directly suggesting that he understood that [Trump] had conditioned the delivery of foreign aid on securing personal benefits,” he said. “That makes the diplomatic exchange one that is corrupted by the president’s intent, and thus both impeachable and quite possibly criminal.”

Another Republican I spoke with, former Florida congressman Carlos Curbelo, said that some of his ex-colleagues’ concerns with how Intelligence Committee chairman Adam Schiff has handled things might be legitimate. But he was not so generous in his assessment of Gaetz and the other SCIF stormers’ motivations: “At the end of the day, Republicans don’t want to face the facts and don’t want to talk about what happened because they can’t defend it, and they shouldn’t try to. So the best available strategy right now is to make these process arguments and to jump in front of the camera.”

While some Republicans are willing to commit egregious security breaches in defence of the president, Curbelo explained that Trump might still have reason to be worried about the rest of the GOP caucus: ”It’s not all Republicans – it’s not even most of the Republicans,” he said. This is being led by a small group who are paladins for the president”. A significant number of others, Curbelo said, are “quietly watching this and processing and digesting the facts as they become known”.

While he cautioned that many of his former colleagues are “waiting for the American people to lead by voicing their opinions,” he told me there is definitely an “erosion of support” for Trump in the GOP caucus: ”People are embarrassed about all of this. Mick Mulvaney’s performance the other day shocked a lot of my former colleagues, so right now this is not going the right way for the president. This marriage with Trump is starting to be very costly.”

“With each passing day, a small number of Republican senators and House members lose a little more confidence in the president and his administration… nothing that the president is doing right now is stopping it.”

Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Show all 26 1 /26 Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Donald Trump Accused of abusing his office by pressing the Ukrainian president in a July phone call to help dig up dirt on Joe Biden, who may be his Democratic rival in the 2020 election. He also believes that Hillary Clinton’s deleted emails - a key factor in the 2016 election - may be in Ukraine, although it is not clear why. EPA Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal The Whistleblower Believed to be a CIA agent who spent time at the White House, his complaint was largely based on second and third-hand accounts from worried White House staff. Although this is not unusual for such complaints, Trump and his supporters have seized on it to imply that his information is not reliable. Expected to give evidence to Congress voluntarily and in secret. Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal The Second Whistleblower The lawyer for the first intelligence whistleblower is also representing a second whistleblower regarding the President's actions. Attorney Mark Zaid said that he and other lawyers on his team are now representing the second person, who is said to work in the intelligence community and has first-hand knowledge that supports claims made by the first whistleblower and has spoken to the intelligence community's inspector general. The second whistleblower has not yet filed their own complaint, but does not need to to be considered an official whistleblower. Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Rudy Giuliani Former mayor of New York, whose management of the aftermath of the September 11 attacks in 2001 won him worldwide praise. As Trump’s personal attorney he has been trying to find compromising material about the president’s enemies in Ukraine in what some have termed a “shadow” foreign policy. In a series of eccentric TV appearances he has claimed that the US state department asked him to get involved. Giuliani insists that he is fighting corruption on Trump’s behalf and has called himself a “hero”. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Volodymyr Zelensky The newly elected Ukrainian president - a former comic actor best known for playing a man who becomes president by accident - is seen frantically agreeing with Trump in the partial transcript of their July phone call released by the White House. With a Russian-backed insurgency in the east of his country, and the Crimea region seized by Vladimir Putin in 2014, Zelensky will have been eager to please his American counterpart, who had suspended vital military aid before their phone conversation. He says there was no pressure on him from Trump to do him the “favour” he was asked for. Zelensky appeared at an awkward press conference with Trump in New York during the United Nations general assembly, looking particularly uncomfortable when the American suggested he take part in talks with Putin. AFP/Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Mike Pence The vice-president was not on the controversial July call to the Ukrainian president but did get a read-out later. However, Trump announced that Pence had had “one or two” phone conversations of a similar nature, dragging him into the crisis. Pence himself denies any knowledge of any wrongdoing and has insisted that there is no issue with Trump’s actions. It has been speculated that Trump involved Pence as an insurance policy - if both are removed from power the presidency would go to Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, something no Republican would allow. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Rick Perry Trump reportedly told a meeting of Republicans that he made the controversial call to the Ukrainian president at the urging of his own energy secretary, Rick Perry, and that he didn’t even want to. The president apparently said that Perry wanted him to talk about liquefied natural gas - although there is no mention of it in the partial transcript of the phone call released by the White House. It is thought that Perry will step down from his role at the end of the year. Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Joe Biden The former vice-president is one of the frontrunners to win the Democratic nomination, which would make him Trump’s opponent in the 2020 election. Trump says that Biden pressured Ukraine to sack a prosecutor who was investigating an energy company that Biden’s son Hunter was on the board of, refusing to release US aid until this was done. However, pressure to fire the prosecutor came on a wide front from western countries. It is also believed that the investigation into the company, Burisma, had long been dormant. Reuters Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Hunter Biden Joe Biden’s son has been accused of corruption by the president because of his business dealings in Ukraine and China. However, Trump has yet to produce any evidence of corruption and Biden’s lawyer insists he has done nothing wrong. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal William Barr The attorney-general, who proved his loyalty to Trump with his handling of the Mueller report, was mentioned in the Ukraine call as someone president Volodymyr Zelensky should talk to about following up Trump’s preoccupations with the Biden’s and the Clinton emails. Nancy Pelosi has accused Barr of being part of a “cover-up of a cover-up”. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Mike Pompeo The secretary of state initially implied he knew little about the Ukraine phone call - but it later emerged that he was listening in at the time. He has since suggested that asking foreign leaders for favours is simply how international politics works. Gordon Sondland testified that Pompeo was "in the loop" and knew what was happening in Ukraine. Pompeo has been criticised for not standing up for diplomats under his command when they were publicly criticised by the president. AFP via Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Nancy Pelosi The Democratic Speaker of the House had long resisted calls from within her own party to back a formal impeachment process against the president, apparently fearing a backlash from voters. On September 24, amid reports of the Ukraine call and the day before the White House released a partial transcript of it, she relented and announced an inquiry, saying: “The president must be held accountable. No one is above the law.” Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Adam Schiff Democratic chairman of the House intelligence committee, one of the three committees leading the inquiry. He was criticized by Republicans for giving what he called a “parody” of the Ukraine phone call during a hearing, with Trump and others saying he had been pretending that his damning characterisation was a verbatim reading of the phone call. He has also been criticised for claiming that his committee had had no contact with the whistleblower, only for it to emerge that the intelligence agent had contacted a staff member on the committee for guidance before filing the complaint. The Washington Post awarded Schiff a “four Pinocchios” rating, its worst rating for a dishonest statement. Reuters Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman Florida-based businessmen and Republican donors Lev Parnas (pictured with Rudy Giuliani) and Igor Fruman were arrested on suspicion of campaign finance violations at Dulles International Airport near Washington DC on 9 October. Separately the Associated Press has reported that they were both involved in efforts to replace the management of Ukraine's gas company, Naftogaz, with new bosses who would steer lucrative contracts towards companies controlled by Trump allies. There is no suggestion of any criminal activity in these efforts. Reuters Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal William Taylor The most senior US diplomat in Ukraine and the former ambassador there. As one of the first two witnesses in the public impeachment hearings, Taylor dropped an early bombshell by revealing that one of his staff – later identified as diplomat David Holmes – overheard a phone conversation in which Donald Trump could be heard asking about “investigations” the very day after asking the Ukrainian president to investigate his political enemies. Taylor expressed his concern at reported plans to withhold US aid in return for political smears against Trump’s opponents, saying: “It's one thing to try to leverage a meeting in the White House. It's another thing, I thought, to leverage security assistance -- security assistance to a country at war, dependent on both the security assistance and the demonstration of support." Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal George Kent A state department official who appeared alongside William Taylor wearing a bow tie that was later mocked by the president. He accused Rudy Giuliani, Mr Trump’s personal lawyer, of leading a “campaign of lies” against Marie Yovanovitch, who was forced out of her job as US ambassador to Ukraine for apparently standing in the way of efforts to smear Democrats. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Marie Yovanovitch One of the most striking witnesses to give evidence at the public hearings, the former US ambassador to Ukraine received a rare round of applause as she left the committee room after testifying. Canadian-born Yovanovitch was attacked on Twitter by Donald Trump while she was actually testifying, giving Democrats the chance to ask her to respond. She said she found the attack “very intimidating”. Trump had already threatened her in his 25 July phone call to the Ukrainian president saying: “She’s going to go through some things.” Yovanovitch said she was “shocked, appalled and devastated” by the threat and by the way she was forced out of her job without explanation. REUTERS Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Alexander Vindman A decorated Iraq War veteran and an immigrant from the former Soviet Union, Lt Col Vindman began his evidence with an eye-catching statement about the freedoms America afforded him and his family to speak truth to power without fear of punishment. One of the few witnesses to have actually listened to Trump’s 25 July call with the Ukrainian president, he said he found the conversation so inappropriate that he was compelled to report it to the White House counsel. Trump later mocked him for wearing his military uniform and insisting on being addressed by his rank. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Jennifer Williams A state department official acting as a Russia expert for vice-president Mike Pence, Ms Williams also listened in on the 25 July phone call. She testified that she found it “unusual” because it focused on domestic politics in terms of Trump asking a foreign leader to investigate his political opponents. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Kurt Volker The former special envoy to Ukraine was one of the few people giving evidence who was on the Republican witness list although what he had to say may not have been too helpful to their cause. He dismissed the idea that Joe Biden had done anything corrupt, a theory spun without evidence by the president and his allies. He said that he thought the US should be supporting Ukraine’s reforms and that the scheme to find dirt on Democrats did not serve the national interest. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Tim Morrison An expert on the National Security Council and another witness on the Republican list. He testified that he did not think the president had done anything illegal but admitted that he feared it would create a political storm if it became public. He said he believed the moving the record of the controversial 25 July phone call to a top security server had been an innocent mistake. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Gordon Sondland In explosive testimony, one of the men at the centre of the scandal got right to the point in his opening testimony: “Was there a quid pro quo? Yes,” said the US ambassador to the EU who was a prime mover in efforts in Ukraine to link the release of military aid with investigations into the president’s political opponents. He said that everyone knew what was going on, implicating vice-president Mike Pence and secretary of state Mike Pompeo. The effect of his evidence is perhaps best illustrated by the reaction of Mr Trump who went from calling Sondland a “great American” a few weeks earlier to claiming that he barely knew him. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Laura Cooper A Pentagon official, Cooper said Ukrainian officials knew that US aid was being withheld before it became public knowledge in August – undermining a Republican argument that there can’t have been a quid pro quo between aid and investigations if the Ukrainians didn’t know that aid was being withheld. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal David Hale The third most senior official at the state department. Hale testified about the treatment of Marie Yovanovitch and the smear campaign that culminated in her being recalled from her posting as US ambassador to Ukraine. He said: “I believe that she should have been able to stay at post and continue to do the outstanding work.” EPA Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Fiona Hill Arguably the most confident and self-possessed of the witnesses in the public hearings phase, the Durham-born former NSC Russia expert began by warning Republicans not to keep repeating Kremlin-backed conspiracy theories. In a distinctive northeastern English accent, Dr Hill went on to describe how she had argued with Gordon Sondland about his interference in Ukraine matters until she realised that while she and her colleagues were focused on national security, Sondland was “being involved in a domestic political errand”. She said: “I did say to him, ‘Ambassador Sondland, Gordon, this is going to blow up’. And here we are.” AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal David Holmes The Ukraine-based diplomat described being in a restaurant in Kiev with Gordon Sondland while the latter phoned Donald Trump. Holmes said he could hear the president on the other end of the line – because his voice was so “loud and distinctive” and because Sondland had to hold the phone away from his ear – asking about the “investigations” and whether the Ukrainian president would cooperate. REUTERS

For his part, Trump seemed to think everything was fine when I saw him on Friday morning.

“I did nothing wrong; this has been going on since I got elected,” he said just before he helicoptered away from the White House.

He invoked the names of some of betes noires he’d conjured during the Mueller investigation – Peter Stzrok, Lisa Page, Barack Obama, the “Never Trumpers” – comparing them to House Democrats now investigating much more than his “perfect call,” along with the more than 50 per cent of Americans who now support their work. He railed against those he’d recently called “human scum”.

While some of his allies – most notably former chief strategist Steve Bannon – have fretted about the White House’s seeming lack of a strategy or direction in the face of the Democrats’ inquiry’s quickening pace, Trump denied that he needed anyone else in his corner.

“Everybody’s talking about teams,” he said. “Here’s the thing: I don’t have teams. I’m the team.”