Pelosi will not send articles of impeachment to the Senate today

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says the House will not vote Friday on a resolution to designate impeachment managers to prosecute the case against President Trump in a Senate trial, further extending the impasse between the House and the Senate over when articles of impeachment will be delivered.

When asked by reporters when she would announce the timing of a vote on such a resolution, Pelosi demurred.

“I’ll be communicating with my members, and perhaps we’ll see that,” she said, indicating that as early as this afternoon, she may inform House Democrats about timing of the vote. Pelosi did tell reporters Thursday that she wouldn’t hold the articles “indefinitely,” and that the House would transmit them to the Senate “soon.”

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell had said that he expected to see the articles delivered as early as Friday. Politico reported that McConnell told Republican senators Thursday that he expected the articles to be transmitted Friday, which would have set up an impeachment trial to begin next week.

Pelosi has been withholding the articles from the Senate, saying she needs to see the rules for the trial set by the Senate before the House delivers the articles. Democrats argue that the Senate needs to hear from new witnesses and admit new evidence for it to be a fair trial.

But McConnell announced Tuesday that Republicans have the votes to pass the organizing resolution determining the rules of the trial, which would mirror the procedures used in the Clinton impeachment trial. Under the resolution, House impeachment managers and the president’s defense team would deliver opening statements before the Senate would vote on whether to call witnesses or consider new evidence.

Meanwhile, Senator Lindsey Graham introduced a resolution Thursday condemning Pelosi for not immediately transmitting the articles of impeachment to the Senate, and demanding that the House deliver the articles immediately.

Under Senate rules, the trial cannot begin until the House names impeachment managers to prosecute the case against Mr. Trump and then formally delivers the articles to the Senate.