Pelosi takes power and sets high bar for Trump impeachment | TheHill – The Hill

The tricky question of impeachment is one that threatens to tear apart the Democratic caucus, as a hungry crop of younger and more progressive lawmakers is itching to use their newfound power to aggressively go after Trump.

More senior lawmakers, meanwhile, worry that premature calls for impeachment could be seen as pure partisan overreach — and could hurt the party’s chances of ousting Trump in the 2020 election.

Those divisions were on full display during the first day of the new Congress, with Rep. Brad ShermanBradley (Brad) James ShermanRashida Tlaib calls to impeach Trump on her first day in Congress Jordan blasts Democrat for pursuing Trump impeachment on first day of new Congress House elects Pelosi to second Speakership MORE (D-Calif.) introducing articles of impeachment and offering a preview of the internal battles to come.

“There is no reason [impeachment] shouldn’t be before the Congress,” Sherman told the Los Angeles Times. “Every day, Donald Trump shows that leaving the White House would be good for our country.”

Conservative Rep. Jim JordanJames (Jim) Daniel JordanJordan blasts Democrat for pursuing Trump impeachment on first day of new Congress Live coverage: House elects new Speaker as Dems take charge What a year it’s been: A month-by-month look back at 2018’s biggest stories MORE (R-Ohio), a top Trump ally, was quick to seize on the move, using the measure’s quick introduction as a club over Democrats’ heads.

“We knew they couldn’t help themselves. Rep. Sherman files articles of impeachment on the President,” Jordan tweeted Thursday. “Dems are more focused on stopping Trump than building the Wall and helping the country.”

Pelosi has long implored Democrats to resist talking about impeachment until after Mueller issues his final report on the Russia probe. Democratic leaders are concerned that launching early impeachment proceedings would turn off moderates and energize the president’s base heading into the 2020 election cycle.

And even if the House agreed to remove Trump from office, it’s highly unlikely that the GOP-controlled Senate would follow through, especially given the higher threshold needed for impeachment in the upper chamber.

But that doesn’t mean Democrats are going to take a hands-off approach when it comes to oversight of the Trump administration. Pelosi is vowing to serve as a check on Trump by using the basket of investigative tools that are now at Democrats’ disposal.

“He was used to serving with a Republican Congress, House and Senate that was a rubber stamp to him. That won’t be the case,” Pelosi told USA TODAY. “Oversight of government by the Congress is our responsibility. That’s the role that we play.”

One of the party’s top priorities is protecting the Mueller probe. Top Democrats on the Judiciary Committee immediately introduced a bill on Thursday to protect the investigation, while Chairman Jerry NadlerJerrold (Jerry) Lewis Nadler2019 is going to be a tough year for Nancy Pelosi GOP rep says Dems will impeach Trump Mueller filings threaten Trump but fall short of case for impeachment MORE (D-N.Y.) has threatened to subpoena acting Attorney General Matt WhitakerMatthew G WhitakerSenate sets Barr’s confirmation hearing Trump’s most memorable insults and nicknames of 2018 Schiff: Trump conversations with acting attorney general ‘wrong at every level’ MORE, who openly criticized the Russia probe, to testify in front of Congress.

At some point, however, Pelosi will have to make a decision on impeachment — and she will especially face pressure to do so after the Mueller report comes out.

Federal prosecutors in New York have already said that Trump directed Michael Cohen, his former personal attorney, to pay off two women who claimed to have had affairs with Trump to prevent negative information from surfacing that would hurt his chances in the 2016 election. Nadler called it an “impeachable offense,” though he questioned whether it was worth removing a president from office over just that.

The same day, Mueller described Cohen’s cooperation in his sprawling Russia investigation as useful and ongoing, while accusing Paul Manafort, the president’s former campaign chairman, of lying to investigators about his contacts with Trump administration officials that extended into 2018.

The bombshell allegations only increased chatter in the Capitol about impeachment, despite the pleas from Democratic leaders to hold off.

“It’s not too soon to be talking about it,” incoming House Armed Services Chairman Adam SmithDavid (Adam) Adam SmithFive challenges awaiting Mattis’s successor House Dems staffing up ahead of likely Trump investigations: report Top House Armed Services Dem: Mattis’s early exit leaves country ‘in a riskier position’ MORE (D-Wash.) told CNN on Thursday. “We will have to decide whether or not it’s the correct course of action. But certainly we should be discussing it and asking those questions and figuring out what the best course of action is.”

During her first speech as Speaker, Pelosi acknowledged the disagreements likely to face the Democratic conference but vowed to confront any challenges head-on.

“We have no illusions that our work will be easy, that all of us in this chamber will always agree.  But let each of us pledge that when we disagree, we will respect each other and we will respect the truth,” she said.

“We will debate and advance good ideas no matter where they come from.”