The Acting Attorney General is issuing an ultimatum. Matthew Whitaker wants a House Judiciary Committee to take the threat of a subpoena off the table or else he says he won’t appear as scheduled tomorrow. Whitaker was appearing voluntarily to answer questions about the Mueller investigation.
On Thursday morning, the committee voted to give its chairman, Representative Jerrold Nadler of New York, the authority to subpoena Mr. Whitaker if he did not answer questions during the hearing or if he chose not to show up.
The subpoena was approved along party lines.
“I hope not to have to use the subpoena,” Mr. Nadler, a Democrat, said Thursday. “Unfortunately a series of troubling events over the last few months suggest that we should be prepared.”
Here was Nadler this morning, explaining why the committee authorized a subpoena, if needed, for Acting AG Whitaker. pic.twitter.com/LJDfyUQREF
— Chris Geidner (@chrisgeidner) February 7, 2019
This news didn’t sit well with Whitaker. He released a statement saying, “Political theater is not the purpose of an oversight hearing, and I will not allow that to be the case.” He also had the Justice Department lay out his demand in writing. The Daily Beast writes:
In a letter sent to House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler Thursday afternoon, Justice Department legislative affairs chief Stephen Boyd said that if Nadler doesn’t make this promise in writing by 6 p.m. Thursday, then Whitaker will be a no-show at the hearing.
In the Department’s sprawling Pennsylvania Avenue headquarters, dozens of officials have been working to get him ready for the testimony he may now skip. The hearing would be the first blockbuster showdown between the Trump administration and oversight-antsy Hill Democrats who just recently secured the power to force the president’s allies to testify. And now, it may not even happen.
Sounds like he may be looking for a reason to get out of testifying and this may it. Former federal prosecutor Renato Mariotti tweeted:
A voluntary witness (as Whitaker was) can refuse to answer questions, but a witness appearing pursuant to a subpoena is required to testify. If Whitaker was subpoenaed and refused to answer questions at that point, Congress could refer him to the DOJ for Contempt of Congress.
Why, then, is Whitaker pulling back from his voluntary testimony? To run out the clock. If Whitaker doesn’t appear tomorrow, Nadler can subpoena him, but that will give DOJ time to fight to limit the scope of the questioning and/or allow Trump to invoke executive privilege.
In the meantime, Barr will likely be confirmed and the interest in Whitaker’s testimony will be diminished.
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