Republicans are calling the impeachment inquiry unfair because the full House didn't vote to start it. A formal vote may offer them greater leverage in the process. Here's why.
Beneath the heated argument of whether the House should have a formal resolution to open an impeachment inquiry is a potential benefit for Republicans, if they can force a vote: the chance to subpoena their own witnesses and information.
The issue could come to a head soon amid reports that the White House plans to announce it will not comply with Democrats’ investigation, or subpoenas, unless the House holds a formal vote opening an impeachment inquiry.House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy asked House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in a letter last week to put the impeachment inquiry on hold “until transparent and equitable rules and procedures are established.
“This is almost entirely about framing the narrative,” he said. “Just on procedural grounds they are going to try to delegitimize the impeachment effort.”There is precedent for McCarthy’s request. The House voted to allow an inquiry into whether to impeach President Clinton in 1998 and President Nixon in 1974, and Republicans have pointed to that as proof that Democrats are acting outside the scope of expected fair behavior regarding impeachment in investigating Trump.
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