House to vote on inquiry to impeach

WASHINGTON — House Democrats have decided to hold a formal vote on opening impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump, a step they had resisted for several weeks.

The vote could come as early as Thursday, Democratic leaders said. Enough Democrats have publicly said that they support the inquiry, which has already been underway since late September, that the outcome is not significantly in doubt, but the details of a resolution to authorize the inquiry, and what rights it might give to the Republican minority, have been an issue.

The resolution would lay out ground rules for the public part of the impeachment inquiry, which is expected to begin in November, after several weeks in which House committees have interviewed witnesses behind closed doors.

The resolution, the text of which will be filed Tuesday, is aimed at “ensuring transparency and providing a clear path forward,” House Rules Committee Chairman Rep. James McGovern, DMass., said in a statement Monday.

Republicans and White House lawyers have made much of the fact that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, directed three committees to begin the impeachment inquiry without holding a vote of the full House. A federal judge ruled Friday, however, that neither the Constitution nor the House rules require that a vote take place.

In a letter to Democrats, Pelosi said the House would vote now to remove any doubt about whether the president and administration officials need to comply with demands for documents and testimony.

The resolution “affirms the ongoing, existing investigation that is currently being conducted by our committees as part of this impeachment inquiry, including all requests for documents, subpoenas for records and testimony, and any other investigative steps previously taken or to be taken as part of this investigation,” Pelosi said in her letter.