Pelosi says Democrats "not on a path to impeachment" despite Trump's "stunt"
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was adamant that Democrats remain uninterested in pursuing impeachment, despite what she called President Trump's "irresponsible behavior" at the White House on Wednesday, when he dismissed claims of a "cover-up" in a 12-minute long tirade against Democrats in the Rose Garden.
At her weekly press conference on Capitol Hill on Thursday, Pelosi claimed the president is "crying out for impeachment" as Democrats continue to press ahead with numerous investigations into the Trump administration. Pelosi told reporters, however, that any suggestion that Democrats are planning to pursue impeachment "simply isn't the truth."
"Impeachment is a very divisive place to go in our country," said Pelosi, reiterating her long-held position.
Her comments to reporters come one day after a bipartisan meeting on infrastructure at the White House collapsed, with the president incensed by comments Pelosi made Wednesday morning. After a meeting with Democratic lawmakers prior to the meeting, Pelosi said the president was engaged in a "cover-up" by fighting congressional subpoenas.
Those comments caused the president to walk out of the planned talks after just three minutes of discussion, during which the president said he would not take up an infrastructure package until Democrats dropped their probes all together.
On Thursday, the speaker said Mr. Trump "pulled a stunt" at the infrastructure meeting in order to distract from Democrats' victories in court over subpoenas for the president's financial information. She also said Mr. Trump is not "up to the task" to work on an infrastructure deal, and is instead trying to goad Democrats into opening an impeachment inquiry.
"I truly believe that the president has a bag of tricks," she said. "He's the master of distraction."
In a letter to her Democratic colleagues Wednesday evening, the speaker has implored members to press ahead with legislative business at hand, including developing an infrastructure package, "regardless of the president's behavior."