ICYMI: To "impeach" someone is an old-fashioned way of saying to accuse them. When someone is impeached for high crimes, the accusations could be sent to the senate for a trial to either remove them from power or bar them from ever serving again if they've already left.
The House impeaches, and the Senate can hold trials on the consequences of the accusations.
But, if the Senate is corrupt, and can't be trusted to try cases, the House can still make the accusations, bring in the witnesses, and even come to fact-finding conclusions about guilt.
It is not okay that the House decided to completely abandon that part of their job, and only do the bill-writing part, pretending that there were no serious crimes harming the public, no matter how high the death toll climbs.
When the public hears about shocking crimes in the papers, but nothing happens in the House, @SpeakerPelosi thinks that they're all saying to each other "Well, no point in creating a record about this, WE'll handle it in November!" but really they're saying "Is this story true?
Again and again and again a shocking crime is revealed in a paper, denied by the accused, and that's the end of that. It helps Russia create a state of uncertainty about reality, when the House does nothing. If the crimes were true, surely there would be at least an inquiry.
Within the Pelosi-bubble, it's taken as a point of faith that investigating people for crimes helps them and hurts you, so you'll hear bizarre arguments like wait until *after* the voters choose, *then* we can inform them about his crimes safely.
Just wait until the criminal quietly gives up power and subjects himself to ordinary law again (and no fair using his supreme court picks to stay in power) and THEN we'll tell the public all about everything he did, on the record, with witnesses hauled in if need be. Upside down.
In between "unilateral power to kick a president out of office whenever she pleases" and "completely powerless to even tell the public about any crimes" there is a middle ground and that place is defined in the oath of speakership. There is a duty to not help hide crimes.
There is a duty to tell the future: Hey, these things are high crimes, do not try them again, future presidents.
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