But the White House’s plans to indefinitely stiff-arm their requests for documents and testimony, combined with the instances of alleged obstruction already laid out in Mueller’s report, is complicating that plan— and may drag House Democrats toward impeachment as an appropriately forceful way to respond to the administration’s conduct.

“I think the combination of the chilling depictions in the Mueller Report and Trump’s opacity is moving some members into the impeachment camp,” said one Democratic lawmaker. “Translation: it’s always the cover-up that gets ‘em.”

And a senior Democratic aide told The Daily Beast that the temperature within the conference has gone up since Trump said point-blank that the White House fights all congressional subpoenas…

“If the president is successful in stopping us from collecting evidence, then we have a judgment to make: Can we discharge our constitutional responsibility in the face of that, or is that in and of itself sufficient obstruction of Congress?” said Rep. David Cicilline, a Rhode Island Democrat and member of House Leadership. “That was the third article of the Nixon impeachment. I don’t know that we’re there yet.”