House Speaker Nancy Pelosi left the impeachment inquiry timeline open-ended on Thursday, even as members of her caucus are still eyeing an end-of-year deadline.
“I have no idea,” Mrs. Pelosi told reporters of when the investigation might wrap up. “The timeline will be determined by the truth.”
The impeachment inquiry, now centered on allegations President Trump tried to leverage Ukraine into opening an investigation into the Biden family, was officially sanctioned by the speaker three weeks ago but had been ongoing for weeks before then, according to House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler.
It’s picked up steam in the last few weeks as chairs of the House Intelligence, Foreign Affairs, and Oversight Committees have brought in a slew of former and current State Department officials to testify about the policies in place at the time, the question of delayed aid, and the role Mr. Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudolph W. Giuliani, played.
Democratic supporters of impeachment are confident the case will be in their favor, and many members are hoping a decision of articles of impeachment can be made before the 2020 elections move into full swing.
However, the resistance from the administration could complicate that streamlined goal.
“Everyone that I talked to would like this to be done in 2019. The problem is that the president is a one-man crime wave,” Rep. Jamie Raskin, Maryland Democrat, said.
However, Mrs. Pelosi said the election cycle should have no impact on impeachment.
“That’s about the election. That has nothing to do with what is happening in terms our oath of office to protect and defend the constitution,” she said. “The two are completely separate.”
• Gabriella Muñoz can be reached at gmunoz@washingtontimes.com.
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