Good Monday morning. I'm Anna Palmer and welcome to your Politico Playbook Audi briefing. Stay tuned after the show for a message from the American Association of Railroads. It's not about President Donald Trump. It's about the Constitution. That's the message Speaker Nancy Pelosi wants House Democrats to remember as they gear up for what will be a key week in their march to

impeachment. Pelosi on a conference call with House Democrats on Sunday also noted that the

polls have changed drastically about this, pointing to numbers showing that support for impeachment

has surged since her announcement. The call underscored the tricky position Democrats, particularly those in districts that

Trump won, are in as they move to sell the impeachment inquiry over the two-week recess.

It also comes amid a growing frustration among many Democrats over inconsistent messaging

about how to talk about impeachment.

Our colleague, Sarah Ferris and Andrew DeZadario, broke down the Dems strategy, reporting that DTUCC Chair,

Sherry Bustos advised vulnerable Dems to gauge support and test their message through polling.

She also said the D-Trucc could deploy online ads and shared polling that

found 54% of likely voters support the Democrats' inquiry. Democratic caucus chairman Hakeem

Jeffries outlined a plan to use repetition to message the plan. The New York Times has a piece

up reported from California, noting how Democrats are treading

carefully around the issue, particularly those who won Republican seats in the midterms.

Outgoing House Freedom Caucus chairman Mark Meadows told us Saturday at a playbook exchange in Austin

for the Texas Tribune Festival that Republicans' path back to the majority runs straight through

California.

In recess, what recess? Reuters broke down. What's going to happen this week? Wednesday,

there's going to be a deposition for former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine. Thursday, a deposition

from Trump's former special representative for Ukraine, Kurt Volker,

and Friday a closed-door hearing with the intelligence community's inspector general, Michael

Atkinson. Meanwhile, Joe Biden's campaign is pushing back on networks booking Rudy Giuliani.

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