They did not question some administration figures who declined to appear and some, like key witness John Bolton, who they did not even subpoena. Intelligence Committee chairman Rep. Adam Schiff said going to court to enforce a subpoena — the normal way of doing things — would take too long. Democrats, Schiff said, did not want to play a game of “rope-a-dope” with the White House. So they did not even try to compel Bolton’s testimony.

Now, with an impeachment trial approaching, if Pelosi and her Democratic forces didn’t lift a finger to try to force Bolton and others to testify, why should Senate Republicans?

Of course, President Trump and some of his GOP allies have talked about calling witnesses of their own — Hunter Biden, Joe Biden, the whistleblower. But the prevailing mood among many Senate Republicans appears to be against that. Why introduce any new imponderables into the case? Why risk something happening that would extend a trial many Republicans would like to dispense with as quickly as possible? In short, why allow impeachment to become exciting?

Better for the GOP to have a get-it-over-with impeachment.