The U.S. Justice Department and lawyers for House Democrats on Monday presented competing views on how quickly a federal appeals could should resolve a dispute over a subpoena seeking the testimony of Donald McGahn, a former Trump White House counsel who has obeyed the president’s command not to speak with congressional investigators.

House Democrats consider McGahn, now a Jones Day partner in Washington, a central witness to allegations that Trump has obstructed Congress and abused his power, the basis of two articles of impeachment the House embraced last week. The Justice Department, meanwhile, suggested that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit refrain from any judgment at all—or at least not while the removal of Trump will be considered.