President Donald Trump fired back at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's accusation on Wednesday that he is engaged in a cover-up, saying at a hastily arranged White House appearance, "I don't do cover-ups."

Trump also said he would not work with Democrats on a major infrastructure proposal because of "phony" investigations they are pursuing in Congress. The Republican president added that he was upset that Democratic lawmakers discussed the possibility of impeaching him before a White House meeting on infrastructure.

Trump holds surprise press conference after Pelosi accuses him of 'cover-up'

The president repeated his rhetoric about Special Counsel Robert Mueller's Russia probe. "No collusion, no obstruction, no nothing," Trump said. "This whole thing was a take-down attempt at the president of the United States."

Pelosi spoke to reporters following a meeting of House Democrats as lawmakers contend with how to handle multiple investigations into Trump, a Republican, and his administration, including whether to launch an impeachment inquiry.

More Democrats are calling — and more loudly — for impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump after his latest defiance of Congress by blocking his former White House lawyer from testifying.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, still favoring a more methodical approach, convened a meeting Wednesday with Democrats to discuss steps forward.

The growing number of rank-and-file House Democrats, incensed by former counsel Don McGahn's empty chair in the Judiciary Committee hearing room on Tuesday, have confronted Pelosi and pushed her and other leaders to act. Trump has broadly stonewalled most all of their investigations, saying he will fight "all the subpoenas."

Pelosi has said she believes Trump is "goading" Democrats into impeachment. Trump appeared to relish the Democratic division in a Wednesday tweet: "The Democrats are getting ZERO work done in Congress."

Some Democratic leaders, while backing Pelosi, signaled that a march to impeachment may become inevitable.

"We are confronting what might be the largest, broadest cover-up in American history," Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told reporters. If a House inquiry "leads to other avenues including impeachment," the Maryland Democrat said, "so be it."