Trump criticizes Pelosi for holding back articles of impeachment

President Trump alleged Thursday that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is “afraid” to present articles of impeachment to the Senate because House Democrats have a weak case for impeaching him.

Trump lambasted the move to impeach him as “phony” and a “HOAX,” tweeting just as Pelosi was delivering a weekly news conference on Capitol Hill — an indication he may have been watching her remarks.

“Pelosi feels her phony impeachment HOAX is so pathetic she is afraid to present it to the Senate, which can set a date and put this whole SCAM into default if they refuse to show up!” Trump wrote, accusing House Democrats of being a party of “Do Nothings.”

“The Do Nothings are so bad for our Country!” Trump wrote.

Trump was reacting to comments made by Pelosi on Wednesday evening — just after the Democratic-controlled House approved articles accusing the president of abusing his power and obstructing Congress almost strictly along party lines — suggesting the House may wait to deliver the articles to the Senate.

Democrats have expressed skepticism that the GOP-controlled Senate would put on a fair and impartial trial. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) told reporters Tuesday he was not “impartial at all” and called impeachment a political process. 

Pelosi was noncommittal when asked repeatedly about the timing and said that she wanted to “see what the process is on the Senate side.” Her remarks generated speculation that Pelosi might delay the articles in order to offer leverage to Senate Democrats as they negotiate with McConnell on the contours of a Senate trial. 

Pelosi said Thursday that she wasn’t prepared to put the names of the House managers on the bill that would be delivered to the Senate until House Democrats see what shape the process will take in the upper chamber.

“I was not prepared to put the managers on that bill yet because we don’t know the arena that we are in,” Pelosi told reporters. “Frankly, I don’t care what the Republicans say.”

When asked whether a “fair process” was her requirement for delivering the articles to the Senate, Pelosi replied, “We’d like to see a fair process, but we’ll see what they have and we’ll be ready for whatever it is.”

Trump is widely expected to be acquitted in the Senate impeachment trial, and the White House has looked forward to the process in the Senate as a venue in which the president can be vindicated.

In tweets earlier Thursday, Trump criticized a potential delay in a Senate trial, saying Democrats would “lose by Default” if they don’t transmit the articles to the upper chamber.

McConnell ripped the impeachment as a “slapdash” and “rushed” effort in remarks on the Senate floor Thursday morning.

“Let’s be clear: the House’s vote yesterday was not some neutral judgment. … It was the predetermined end of a partisan crusade,” the Republican majority leader said.