Pelosi to name impeachment managers, House to vote on sending articles to Senate

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drnadig/iStock(WASHINGTON) — The House will vote on Wednesday to formally send the impeachment charges against President Donald Trump to the Senate, kicking off the third presidential impeachment trial in American history.House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will also name the lawmakers she has tapped to argue the House Democrats’ case on the Senate floor. Known as managers, the team will represent the House in the Senate trial and also formally deliver and present the impeachment articles to the Senate.The House is expected to vote about midday Wednesday on a resolution appointing the managers, which will trigger the delivery of the articles to the Senate and the start of the trial proceedings.Though the House voted to impeach Trump in December, charging him with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, Pelosi withheld delivering the charges to the Senate until Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell outlined the rules of the trial and committed to bringing key witnesses before the Senate to testify, including former White House national security adviser John Bolton.While McConnell resisted Pelosi’s pressure campaign, a number of Senate Republicans have expressed interest in voting to hear from witnesses after the initial opening arguments. And McConnell has ruled out dismissing the charges against Trump at the start of proceedings, a move that Democrats feared would circumvent an airing of the charges against the president. “The American people deserve the truth, and the Constitution demands a trial,” Pelosi wrote in a statement released on Tuesday.Shortly after word came about the planned House vote, McConnell took to the Senate floor to lambaste what he called an “arbitrary” month-long delay in sending over the articles. The delay has impacted the plans of the several Senate Democrats running for president, forcing them to adjust their campaign schedules leading up to the Iowa caucuses early next month. McConnell said that the Senate trial is expected to begin next Tuesday. Removal from office would require 67 senators voting in favor of conviction, constituting a simple majority of the body. That means at least 20 Republicans would need to turn against the president, assuming all Democrats vote to convict. Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.