Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s Tuesday announcement regarding the House Democrats’ impeachment plans is less significant than the build-up had suggested. After months of pressure from Democratic colleagues, she declared that the House would begin a formal impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump. While her statement may be a milestone on the path to impeachment, it does not actually start the process on its own.

“Speaker Pelosi’s decree changes absolutely nothing,” Georgia Representative Doug Collins, the ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, wrote on Twitter. “As I have been telling [House Judiciary Committee] Chairman [Jerry] Nadler for weeks, merely claiming the House is conducting an impeachment inquiry doesn’t make it so. Until the full House votes to authorize an inquiry, nobody is conducting a formal inquiry.”

Collins is right. Nadler already began describing his hearings as “formal impeachment proceedings” last month. Pelosi said before her statement that the House would vote on a resolution on Wednesday, but she described it as a non-binding measure “making it clear Congress’ disapproval” of Trump’s handling of Ukraine, and not as one that would authorize impeachment proceedings. That distinction makes Tuesday’s announcement more theatrical than substantive at a time when boldness is necessary.

None of the arguments against acting boldly hold up to scrutiny. Some of Trump’s opponents, for example, still believe that impeachment might be a tactical mistake that would invigorate his supporters. Will there be enough votes in the Senate to convict him? The general assumption is that there currently aren’t—not just because Republicans control the chamber, but because the Constitution requires the votes of 67 senators to remove a president from office. Trump’s grip on the GOP base may keep most Republicans senators quiescent even if the House uncovers damning evidence.

“Here’s the dilemma that you have,” Bernie Sanders told reporters earlier on Tuesday, “Now I don’t know—I’ll tell you that my gut is that the average Republican in the Senate and the House is totally intimidated by President Trump. And at this particular point, I have my doubts, like you all. I have my doubts that any Republican, or very few, would vote against him.” He added that he feared an acquittal because “I know and you know what [Trump] will do: ‘I am vindicated! … I am vindicated!’ And I think that is a fact that has to be taken into consideration.”