Douglas Collins, Ga., the panel’s ranking Republican. “This subpoena is nothing short of political theater,” said Rep. therefore I expect the acting attorney general to answer all of these questions without equivocation.”īut Republicans objected to the move, arguing that Whitaker had not given the panel a legitimate reason to be concerned – and that approving a preemptive subpoena would set a bad precedent for the panel. “The committee can and should expect a direct answer to any question,” said Nadler, who opted to send Whitaker his questions in advance and require that he tell the panel about any plans to invoke executive privilege at least 48 hours before the hearing. They pointed to a pattern of administration witnesses, such as former attorney general Jeff Sessions, who refused to answer certain queries by suggesting that the president “might” want to invoke executive privilege over certain parts of their testimony, to justify the concern. “You can’t pretend there’s been no conversations for the last month.”ĭemocrats worry that Whitaker, whose public comments before taking over the Justice Department suggested that he was sympathetic to Trump and critical of the Mueller inquiry, may seek to evade questions he is asked during the proceedings. “Unfortunately, a series of troubling events over the past few months suggest that we should be prepared.”ĭaniel Schwarz, Nadler’s spokesman, said, “That’s what we’ve been talking about this whole time.” He stressed that the panel had sent Whitaker many letters and requests to settle points of his testimony in advance, to which he had chosen not to respond. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., the committee chairman, said earlier Thursday. “I hope not to have to use the subpoena,” Rep. The panel vote on the subpoena along partisan lines underscores the new political tensions around Mueller’s work now that Democrats control the House. “We do not believe, however, that the committee may legitimately expect the acting attorney general to discuss his communications with the president,” Boyd wrote. Whitaker, the letter said, is willing to discuss with lawmakers his decision not to recuse himself from the Mueller investigation. “Respectfully, this proposed approach reflects a striking departure from the constitutionally based understanding between our co-equal branches of government,” wrote Stephen Boyd, head of the Justice Department’s office of legislative affairs. Whitaker’s position was relayed in a letter sent Thursday to the committee. “Political theater is not the purpose of an oversight hearing, and I will not allow that to be the case,” he said. Leading up to Friday’s scheduled hearing, Democrats vowed to press Whitaker about his conversations with President Donald Trump and about Whitaker’s decision not to recuse himself from special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential campaign.ĭemocrats have vowed to press Whitaker at the hearing about his conversations with President Donald Trump, and Whitaker’s decision not to recuse himself from special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential campaign. However the Whitaker subpoena standoff ends, it may set the tone for months or years more of wrangling between the White House and congressional Democrats. The confrontation highlights efforts by Democrats to assert their new control of the House of Representatives as a check on the Trump administration’s power, and the administration’s determination to push back against congressional investigations decried by the president. Whitaker’s move came shortly after the House Judiciary Committee voted along party lines to give its chairman the authority to subpoena Whitaker’s testimony, should he not appear or answer lawmakers’ questions. WASHINGTON – Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker said he will not appear before Congress on Friday without assurances that he won’t be subpoenaed – giving Democrats a deadline of 6 p.m. By Karoun Demirjian and Devlin Barrett | Washington Post
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