Marketplace®

Daily business news and economic stories

Impeachment inquiry will likely stall legislative agenda

Priorities are expected to shift in the coming weeks and months.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announces a formal impeachment inquiry on September 24, 2019, in Washington, D.C.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announces a formal impeachment inquiry on September 24, 2019, in Washington, D.C.
Alex Wong/Getty Images

While the outcome of the impeachment inquiry in the House of Representatives is hard to predict, one thing is a given, says Rob Shapiro, a senior fellow of the Georgetown School of Business and the chairman of economic advisory firm Sonecon: these inquiries polarize political parties.

“The intensification of the partisan polarization generally precludes any significant legislation,” Shapiro said. “The first defense of any president under threat of impeachment is that it’s a partisan attack.”

If there’s legislative progress to be made, however, it could be on a vote on the USMCA, the updated NAFTA deal with Canada and Mexico.

“It’s something that could rise up to the level of ‘must-do,’ something that members would rather get done before we’re into a full-blown election season next year,” said Edward Mills, a Washington policy analyst at Raymond James, who said he expects the impeachment inquiry to overshadow most everything else.

Related Topics

Latest Episodes

View All Shows
  • Marketplace
    11 hours ago
    25:19
  • Make Me Smart
    16 hours ago
    19:00
  • Marketplace Morning Report
    19 hours ago
    6:55
  • Marketplace Tech
    a day ago
    8:33
  • This Is Uncomfortable
    3 days ago
    56:05
  • Million Bazillion
    24 days ago
    32:45