Mueller Testimony and remarks of Nancy Pelosi about Trump’s impeachment

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The U.S House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other senior members of the Democratic Party have rejected calls to move forward with Donald Trump’s impeachment. They said they needed to yet build a stronger case against the U.S President. The statement comes just hours after Robert Mueller completed his testimony on Capitol Hill. The House speaker brushed off the idea proceeding with the impeachment of the president, something many in her party have called for. Pelosi said that her position has always been: whatever decision they make in that regard would have to be done with their strongest possible hand, and they still have some outstanding matters in the courts. She added, “It’s about the Congress, the constitution and the courts. And we are fighting the president in the courts”.

The House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler said his committee would go to court on Thursday to find access to grand jury material in Mueller’s report and to enforce a subpoena against former White House counsel Don McGahn to try to get him to testify. Nadler said, “Today was a watershed day in telling the facts to the American people. With those facts, we can proceed”. He also stopped short for now of calling for the president’s impeachment. The comments of Pelosi underscore a divide among Democrats on how to proceed with the question of Trump’s impeachment.

 A number of younger and more progressive members, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, supports proceeding with censuring the president and were elected on such a platform. It is noteworthy that a Texas congressman Al Green tried to bring an impeachment resolution against the president, earlier this month. He had the support of 94 other Democrats in his party. This was not his first attempt to table the resolution and this 3^rd effort had more support than his earlier efforts, suggesting the mood among the party was changing. Pelosi is fearful that pursuing Trump’s impeachment would distract both the party and the country as it prepares for the 2020 election. She also thinks it could help energize his base.