The House Judiciary Committee plans to hold a vote Thursday on new investigatory tactics aimed at helping the panel determine whether or not to impeach President Trump.
Panel officials announced the new procedures would apply to future hearings on whether to recommend articles of impeachment against the president even though it is not officially conducting an impeachment inquiry.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi does not support a House vote to launch a formal impeachment inquiry, but Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler of New York, with the California Democrat’s backing, is investigating Trump under what he is calling “impeachment proceedings.”
The top GOP lawmakers on the panel, Rep. Doug Collins of Georgia, said Judiciary Democrats “are trying to pull a fast one on Americans” because they lack enough votes to pass an a formal impeachment inquiry. “They know they don’t have the votes for the whole House to impeach, so they’re trying to adopt committee rules to govern an ‘impeachment investigation’ the House hasn’t even authorized,” Collins tweeted Monday.
The House Judiciary Committee will vote Thursday on new procedures related to their impeachment investigation that would allow extra time for lawmakers to question witnesses and would permit closed-door hearings for lawmakers to consider evidence.
The changes would also allow Trump’s lawyers to provide written responses to evidence and testimony given at the hearings.
The move comes as Democrats ramp up probes of Trump, his administration, his family, personal business, and 2016 presidential campaign.
Nadler announced a Sept. 17 hearing featuring former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski.
Democrats want to question Lewandowski about Trump’s request that he ask then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions to curtail the Mueller investigation into alleged collusion between the Russians and the Trump campaign.
Democrats believe Trump worked to obstruct Mueller’s probe, which they say is an impeachable offense demanding further investigation.
Mueller’s report did not accuse Trump of obstruction, but outlined instances where Trump may have tried to stop the probe.
“The unprecedented corruption, coverup, and crimes by the President are under investigation by the Committee as we determine whether to recommend articles of impeachment or other Article 1 remedies,” Nadler said in a statement Monday.
“The adoption of these additional procedures is the next step in that process and will help ensure our impeachment hearings are informative to Congress and the public, while providing the President with the ability to respond to evidence presented against him.”
