If a few members of the House of Representatives who opposed impeachment were to attempt to filibuster the impeachment, could they or are there any internal house rules that would prevent this?
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No, Filibusters are a product of Senate rules and only exist in the Senate.– divibisanCommented Jan 13, 2021 at 4:29
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@divibisan is there a limit on how long part of the house can hold off a vote by starting a debate? There is not much time until the end of Trump’s term so a few day delay could make a big difference in their ability to impeach Trump.– The MambaCommented Jan 13, 2021 at 4:30
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I’m not sure, but a general question about delays in the House would be interesting. It wouldn’t affect Trump’s impeachment, though, since, as other questions have addressed, he can be impeached after leaving office, and the limiting factor for when he could be removed is the fact that the Senate is on recess until the 19th– divibisanCommented Jan 13, 2021 at 4:47
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The senate will not convene until well after the inauguration, thus any possible impeachment trial cannot start while Trump is in office. So this question is fairly abstract.– puppetsockCommented Jan 15, 2021 at 20:04
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1 Answer
There is no filibuster in the House of Representatives; it is only part of the Senate rules. Furthermore, a majority of the House can vote to end the debate anytime and proceed onto the impeachment vote.
From this CRS report, page 12:
A question of the privileges of the House is considered under the hour rule. Often, the House votes to dispose of such resolutions by referring them to committee or by tabling them. The House could also order the previous question to end debate on the resolution and then vote directly on it. However, the House has never impeached an officer without a committee investigation.
(emphasis mine)
The CRS report (page 12) also offers more details on the process where the resolution containing the article of impeachment was offered directly on the floor (as opposed to the regular House procedure where there would be committee hearings).
A House impeachment resolution would move to the floor and could get a vote quickly, because there would be no hearings to present evidence. The Judiciary Committee has not yet been constituted for the 117th Congress, so an impeachment resolution would go directly to the floor under what's known as a "privileged resolution." A simple majority of members in the House is required for impeachment, so it seems likely to pass.