Hello and welcome to the pro rata podcast, a podcast that takes 10 minutes to get you smarter, faster, on the collision of tech, business, and politics.

Presented by Bridge Bank, Be Bold, Venture Wisely. Filling in for Dan Primak today, I'm Axios editor-in-chief

Nicholas Johnston. On today's show, the somber picture of the Eurozone economic situation

and Bernie's next move on taxes. But first, impeachment day. Extorting a foreign leader for the

purposes of getting that leader to do your political work, to try to find dirt on your opponent, is extortion.

It is using the assets of the United States of America and the public trust for your own

corrupt, if you will, ends, certainly political ends. So of course it's an impeachable offense.

More momentum built among Democrats for impeachment proceedings yesterday than on any other

single day of the Trump presidency. Driving the news last night, seven freshman Democrats, all with

military and national security backgrounds, published a Washington Post op-ed saying it will be, quote,

an impeachable offense, quote, if as alleged about Trump's Ukraine phone call, the president,

quote, used his position to pressure a foreign

country into investigating a political opponent and sought to use taxpayer dollars as leverage.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who was tried to tamp down impeachment fever, has been talking

privately yesterday with lawmakers and allies about where they are on impeachment in light of

the Ukraine revelations and to gauge whether there is a broad

shift within the caucus. Today, the behind-the-scenes action could burst into view. Pelosi is meeting

with her six committee chairs leading different strands of the Trump investigation, and reporters

will be swarming the weekly meeting of House Democrats at the Capitol for more members ready

to join the impeachment bandwagon. Any shift in particular by more vulnerable moderate members, like ones who joined last night's

op-ed, could force Pelosi's hand.

As one leadership aide told us last night, quote, the speaker is a numbers girl.

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