House Democrats clashed with Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and other members in several closed-door meetings Monday night over whether to begin impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump, according to Politico and as later confirmed by several other outlets.
Pelosi has long been resistant to the idea of opening impeachment proceedings against Trump, advocating for a more incremental approach.
Tensions are growing among congressional Democrats as Trump administration officials continue to defy requests for information and witness testimony from the several congressional committees investigating Trump. Democrats on the committees have accused the White House of stonewalling the probes.
Several Democrats advocating for opening impeachment proceedings cited this as a reason, according to Monday’s reports.
“I think if this pattern by the president continues, where he’s going to impede and prevent and undermine our ability to gather evidence to do our job, we’re going to be left with no choice,” Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.) told Politico.
On Monday, former White House counsel Don McGahn said he would not testify before the House Judiciary Committee, at the direction of Trump.
“I think if McGahn doesn’t show, we have to at least start it,” Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) told The Washington Post, referring to a possible impeachment inquiry.
In response to McGahn refusing to appear, committee chair Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) said Monday night that he plans “to look at all our options,” beginning with holding McGahn in contempt.
The committee previously voted to hold Attorney General William Barr in contempt for not releasing an unredacted version of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report. But Pelosi and House Democratic leaders have stalled in bringing the topic to the full House for a vote.