Klobuchar on impeachment: Americans are 'juggling' and so can Senate with trial and confirmation hearings

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Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., insisted Thursday that the Senate could handle "juggling" an impeachment trial for former President Donald Trump while also working through the confirmations of several of President Biden's Cabinet nominees.

Klobuchar told reporters that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. "has signaled willingness to allow this impeachment to go forward." 

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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said Thursday that the article of impeachment against Trump charging him with "incitement of insurrection" after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol that left five people dead, including a Capitol Police officer, would be transmitted to the Senate in the coming days, now that the upper chamber is back in session and Democrats have secured the majority in the Senate. 

Klobuchar and other top Democrats have signaled that they are willing and able to toggle between an impeachment trial, confirmation hearings and other legislative business as well. 

"Why can't we juggle both?" she said. "The American people are doing it, everything, every single day. They are juggling." 

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"I see no reason we have to use some archaic way of doing business when America is struggling and juggling stuff themselves," she added. 

Senators are working to reach an organization agreement laying out a plan for tackling the bevy of issues on lawmakers' plates, but a show of bipartisanship to do so is on shaky ground. 

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has indicated that he's open to establishing a new set of rules that would allow lawmakers to split time between the trial and the legislative business of confirming Biden's nominees – "we've got to move the agenda as well," he said recently – but it appears unlikely that Republicans will support such a move. 

Absent a broader agreement among leadership, Senate rules dictate that during impeachment, which often lasts for weeks, senators must meet six days a week, taking only Sunday off, potentially hindering the new administration. Biden signaled that he was exploring ways to advance his plan to tackle the dual health and economic crises while still pursuing impeachment.

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"We are confident that, just like the American people can, the Senate can also multitask and they can do their constitutional duty while continuing to conduct the business of the American people," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday, hours after Biden's inauguration. "He's going to leave the mechanics to Congress on how to move forward with impeachment."

"You could literally have nomination hearings and votes in the morning and impeachment trial in the afternoon and then in the evening vote on legislative measures," Klobuchar suggested Thursday, saying the chamber is still in "negotiation" on the matter. 

Some Republican lawmakers say an impeachment trial against Trump is no longer necessary now that he is out of office. Others have lamented that a divisive and potentially lengthy trial would go against the message of "unity" Biden has put forth from day one. 

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Fox News' Megan Henney contributed to this report.