It’s Impeachment Day

Playbook: “At 9 a.m., the House will gavel in, and soon thereafter, it will proceed to impeachment. The House first has to debate the ‘rule,’ which sets the guidelines for debate — we expect that procedural vote at some time in the 10 a.m. hour. The House will then move to six hours of debate on impeachment — a very long time compared with other legislative matters. That time is equally divided between the minority and majority. Watch out for Republicans to pull some procedural maneuvers, and ask for unrelated votes, which would elongate the process.”

“Impeachment needs a simple majority of those present and voting to pass. The House has four vacancies, so if everyone is present and voting, 216 is the magic number, not 218.”

“This is just a guess but it’s looking like it will be a late night. Votes could be in the 7-8 p.m. neighborhood — if not later. We can’t imagine they’ll allow themselves to vote too late, but there is the potential for a bizarre split-screen effect, with Democrats (and Justin Amash) voting to impeach the president while he whips up the crowd in Battle Creek, Mich.”