Frustrated members of the House Jan. 6 committee are ratcheting up the public pressure on Attorney General Merrick Garland to pursue criminal charges against former Trump White House aides who are refusing to testify before the panel, arguing his failure to act is hurting their investigation.
After criticizing the Justice Department during a business meeting Monday night, lawmakers on the panel continued to vent Tuesday about the department having yet to criminally charge former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows for contempt of Congress — a referral the House voted in support of nearly four months ago.
They argued the Justice Department should also take speedy action against former Trump White House aides Dan Scavino and Peter Navarro after the committee approved criminal referrals against them Monday, which the House is expected to soon consider.
“It is important for the department to act and to act with alacrity for the principal reason that we're trying to prevent another January 6,” Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) told reporters on Tuesday.
While the DOJ indicted Steve Bannon on a contempt charge, they've yet to address Meadows, leaving committee members exasperated as valuable time slips away.
Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) echoed concerns expressed by committee members and argued the three contempt referrals that have piled up for the DOJ to act on are “very clear” cases.
Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), who declined to join the pressure campaign being waged by his colleagues against Garland, told reporters that he didn't think that there had been communication between the committee and Justice regarding the lingering contempt referral against Meadows. Regardless, he said the committee is still set on holding public hearings this spring.
Looking ahead: White House communications director Kate Bedingfield said during a briefing on Monday that the White House will not assert executive privilege over the testimony of Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump ahead of Kushner's voluntary appearance before the panel on Thursday.
After criticizing the Justice Department during a business meeting Monday night, lawmakers on the panel continued to vent Tuesday about the department having yet to criminally charge former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows for contempt of Congress — a referral the House voted in support of nearly four months ago.
They argued the Justice Department should also take speedy action against former Trump White House aides Dan Scavino and Peter Navarro after the committee approved criminal referrals against them Monday, which the House is expected to soon consider.
“It is important for the department to act and to act with alacrity for the principal reason that we're trying to prevent another January 6,” Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) told reporters on Tuesday.
- “Those who push the big lie that led to violence continue to push that big lie. So we feel a sense of urgency and we hope the [DOJ] does also. To me, these cases…are pretty clear cut in that two of the witnesses simply refused to appear. So it shouldn't be that difficult for the [DOJ] to act.”
While the DOJ indicted Steve Bannon on a contempt charge, they've yet to address Meadows, leaving committee members exasperated as valuable time slips away.
Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) echoed concerns expressed by committee members and argued the three contempt referrals that have piled up for the DOJ to act on are “very clear” cases.
- “We're not a criminal body — we are just looking for the facts and circumstances around January 6 but in the course of that review, there are some very troubling things that we've come upon that we think if [the DOJ] would take a look at it, there would be something there,” Thompson told reports. “We don't have any knowledge that they are, but we don't have any knowledge that they are not.”
Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), who declined to join the pressure campaign being waged by his colleagues against Garland, told reporters that he didn't think that there had been communication between the committee and Justice regarding the lingering contempt referral against Meadows. Regardless, he said the committee is still set on holding public hearings this spring.
- “I feel strongly that we restore the tradition of respect for the independence of the law enforcement function,” said Raskin. “That was one of the things that got trashed during the Trump period. And so I think that Congress and the president should let the Department of Justice and the attorney general do their job… Attorney General Garland is my constituent and I don't beat up on my constituents.”
Looking ahead: White House communications director Kate Bedingfield said during a briefing on Monday that the White House will not assert executive privilege over the testimony of Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump ahead of Kushner's voluntary appearance before the panel on Thursday.
