DC guessing game: who will be impeachment managers?

House Democrats on Monday were winding up for the impeachment punch that would send the case against President Donald Trump to the Senate for trial.

The Senate trial could begin this week, but it now seems more likely to be next week before anything of substance actually happens.

As of Monday night the Articles of Impeachment were still in the House of Representatives.

And in Washington-where political fortune telling is the city's favorite pastime - a guessing game rages as to which members of the House will be managers of the Senate trial.

"You've been on the short list of possible picks to be a House manager for the Senate impeachment trial," was the question for Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Schaumburg. "Do you know if those decisions have been made?" he was asked.

"I, I, I have no idea," the northwest suburban congressman told CNN on Monday morning.

Krishnamoorthi says he doesn't know who will manage the trial, and neither does anyone else- expect perhaps House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California. Speaker Pelosi will meet Tuesday with her party caucus to determine managers and when to send the Articles of Impeachment to the Senate. President Trump was impeached last month by the House on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.

"It's about a fair trial," said Pelosi on ABC Sunday morning. "The senators who are thinking now about voting for witnesses or not, they will have to be accountable. Now the ball is in their court to either do that or pay a price."

Likely to be named as managers are House Intelligence Committee chairman Adam Schiff from California and Judiciary chairman Jerry Nadler from New York. Between the coasts, Krishnamoorthi's name has also come up.

He too is an attorney and a member of the Intel Committee. Monday he didn't want to comment even on whether he would be interested in being a House manager.

"I really don't want to get into it," the suburban Chicago rep said. "I know that Speaker Pelosi is going to assemble a fantastic team who knows the case and will be able to bring credit to the House."

In the nearly month-long gap between impeachment and trial, the president's former national security adviser, John Bolton did offer to testify under subpoena-something the president said he may invoke executive privilege to block.

Even though his legal team declined to participate in the House impeachment process, the president tweeted on Monday: "'We demand fairness' shouts Pelosi and the Do Nothing Democrats, yet the Dems in the House wouldn't let us have 1 witness, no lawyers or even ask questions. It was the most unfair witch-hunt in the history of Congress!"

The last impeachment - Bill Clinton in 1998 - featured 13 House managers. The group was all white, and all male Republicans. This time, the belief is there will be as a few as four and no more than 10 managers. The Democratic line-up under consideration is said to have a more diverse look than 1998.