House Judiciary Committee Finds White House Officials in Contempt of Congress

Press Release

House Judiciary Committee Finds White House Officials in Contempt of Congress

Congresswoman Betty Sutton (OH-13) today voted with colleagues on the House Judiciary Committee to approve a report and resolution finding former White House Counsel Harriet Miers and White House Chief of Staff Joshua Bolten to be in contempt of Congress. The vote came after Miers and Bolten failed to respond to subpoenas issued by the Committee in its investigation of the firing of U.S. Attorneys. The Committee vote was 22-17.

"The Judiciary Committee is exercising its responsibility under the Constitution to carry out oversight of the Executive Branch," Sutton said. "The allegations are serious and deserve investigation, and that cannot happen without all the facts on the record. The possibility that the administration of justice was improperly influenced by a political agenda is something that the Committee cannot, and will not, ignore."

The move followed weeks of negotiation between the Committee and the Bush Administration in which the White House refused to turn over documents relating to the firings of the U.S. Attorneys in December 2006, and during which Miers refused to appear or testify at a July 12 Committee hearing. It has been alleged that the dismissals of the U.S. Attorneys were in reprisal for their refusal to bow to political pressure from Republican Members of Congress and Executive Branch officials. The Judiciary Committee's requests for documents and testimony are aimed at learning what role the White House played in the dismissal decisions.

The report and resolution will next be considered by the full House of Representatives.

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