House Panel Can Now Sue Barr, Other Officials If Needed

To force compliance with congressional subpoenas
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Jun 11, 2019 5:15 PM CDT
House Empowers Panel to Sue Barr, Other Officials If Needed
House Judiciary Committee Chairman, Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., listens during opening statements on Capitol Hill in Washington, Monday, June 10, 2019.   (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Brushing back calls for impeachment, Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Tuesday "it's not even close" to having enough support in the House, while Democrats pushed forward on other fronts to investigate President Trump, the AP reports. The House voted 229-191 Tuesday to approve a resolution that will allow Democrats to accelerate their legal battles with the Trump administration over access to information from the Russia investigation. The far-reaching resolution empowers committee chairs to sue top Trump administration officials—Attorney General William Barr, former White House counsel Don McGahn, and others—to force compliance with congressional subpoenas, including those for special counsel Robert Mueller's full report and his underlying evidence. They now no longer need a vote of the full House.

"We need answers to the questions left unanswered by the Mueller report," Pelosi said on the House floor ahead of voting. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy countered that the Democratic maneuvers are all "just a desperate attempt to relitigate the Mueller investigation." He called it "an impeachment effort in everything but name." The Judiciary Committee chairman, Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York, urged his colleagues to support the legislation "so we can get into court and break the stonewall without delay." It's unclear how quickly Democrats will go to court. House leaders have signaled they will hold off on suing Barr after the committee struck a deal with the Justice Department to receive some underlying materials from Mueller's report. A court case could come more quickly for McGahn, who at the behest of the White House has defied subpoenas for documents and his testimony. (Much more on the Mueller-related hearings this week here.)

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