McConnell, Pelosi stand firm as impeachment remains frozen

The standoff over President Donald Trump's impeachment trial deepened as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said there will be "no haggling'' with Democrats as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi demands for more details and witnesses.

McConnell's Senate majority has the leverage Republicans need to launch Trump's trial toward swift acquittal of the charges, but Pelosi's reluctance to transmit the articles of impeachment leaves the proceedings at a standstill.

What started as a seemingly minor delay over process and procedures is now a high-stakes showdown between two skilled leaders facing off over the rare impeachment trial, only the third in the nation's history.

"There will be no haggling with the House over Senate procedure," McConnell, R-Ky., said on Jan. 8 before meeting with Trump at the White House. "We will not cede our authority to try this impeachment. The House Democrats' turn is over.''

Three weeks have passed since the House impeached Trump on the charge that he abused the power of his office by pressuring Ukraine's new leader to investigate Democrats, using as leverage $400 million in military assistance for the U.S. ally as it counters Russia at its border.

Trump insists he did nothing wrong, but his defiance of the House Democrats' investigation led to an additional charge of obstruction of Congress.

Senators from both sides are eager to serve as jurors for Trump's day in court. The trial will be conducted in the Senate, where Republicans have a thin majority.

But even as McConnell spoke from the Senate floor, Pelosi, D-Calif., was giving no indication of her willingness to agree to his terms. In a closed-door meeting with the House Democratic caucus, she spoke instead about the crisis in the Middle...