House to vote to hold Barr and McGahn in contempt next week
The full House of Representatives will vote on whether to hold Attorney General William Barr and former White House counsel Don McGahn in contempt of Congress on June 11, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said Monday.
"The resolution will authorize the Judiciary Committee to pursue civil action to seek enforcement of its subpoenas in federal court," Hoyer said in a statement. "It also authorizes House Committees that have issued subpoenas as part of their oversight and investigation responsibilities to seek civil enforcement of those subpoenas when they are ignored."
The House Judiciary Committee voted earlier this month to hold Barr in contempt of Congress for failing to comply with its subpoenas regarding documents related to special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia report. President Trump has asserted privilege over the entire Mueller report and underlying documents.
The House Government Reform and Oversight Committee also threatened to hold Barr and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross in contempt for failing to comply with subpoenas for information related to adding a citizenship question to the 2020 census.
Earlier this month, the White House also directed McGahn not to appear before Congress, citing a newly published opinion of the Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel. Democrats had subpoenaed McGahn, hoping to question him about what he had told the special counsel regarding Mr. Trump's orders to fire Mueller, an order that McGahn refused.
"This Administration's systematic refusal to provide Congress with answers and cooperate with Congressional subpoenas is the biggest cover-up in American history, and Congress has a responsibility to provide oversight on behalf of the American people," Hoyer said.
Rebecca Kaplan contributed reporting.
