The House will begin public impeachment hearings Wednesday, but Republicans have yet to learn if any of their requested witnesses will be allowed to appear.
A top GOP aide described Republicans in “a holding pattern” as they wait to find out which witnesses House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff will approve.
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“Additional witnesses will be announced this week,” the California Democrat told House members of his party in a memo sent out Tuesday.
Republicans sent a list of nine individuals to Schiff on Saturday that included Hunter Biden and the anonymous whistleblower, whose complaint about President Trump’s call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky sparked the impeachment investigation.
A Democratic leadership aide said there is no new information about when Schiff will sanction witnesses.
A House resolution passed with only Democratic votes last month set rules for the impeachment investigation that require Schiff and the Democrat to approve of the GOP witness list.
“I guess their decision will be pretty last minute,” a GOP aide said. “But Schiff will continue to make up the rules as he goes.”
Schiff sent out a memo to Democrats on Tuesday outlining to Democrats the procedures for the open hearings.
“We intend to conduct these hearings with the seriousness and professionalism the public deserves,” Schiff told Democrats. “The process will be fair to the President, the Committee Members, and the witnesses. Above all, these hearings are intended to bring the facts to light for the American people.”
The Intelligence Committee hearings don’t allow Trump’s White House counsel, Pat Cipollone, to participate.
Schiff signaled to Democrats Saturday that he won’t allow testimony from Hunter Biden or anyone related to allegations that as vice president, Joe Biden worked to get the Ukrainian government to fire a prosecutor targeting a gas company that employed Hunter Biden.
Schiff also rejected summoning the whistleblower and a Democratic National Committee operative who sought dirt on the 2016 Trump campaign from Ukrainian officials.
Republicans included others on their witness list who Schiff may be more willing to accept, including Ambassador Kurt Volker, who said Trump was seeking assurances from Ukraine to end interference in U.S. elections.
Republicans also listed David Hale, the undersecretary of state for political affairs, and Tim Morrison, senior director for European and Russian affairs on the National Security Council.
Morrison said in closed-door testimony that he did not believe Trump did anything wrong in his July 25 conversation with Zelensky.
