{"id":2246120,"date":"2024-05-16T15:14:02","date_gmt":"2024-05-16T19:14:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/judiciary-committee-passes-merrick-garland-contempt-of-congress-resolution\/"},"modified":"2024-05-16T15:16:49","modified_gmt":"2024-05-16T19:16:49","slug":"judiciary-committee-passes-merrick-garland-contempt-of-congress-resolution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/judiciary-committee-passes-merrick-garland-contempt-of-congress-resolution\/","title":{"rendered":"Judiciary Committee Approves Contempt Resolution for Merrick Garland"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fjudiciary-committee-passes-merrick-garland-contempt-of-congress-resolution%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2246120&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The House Judiciary Committee voted to advance a contempt\u2064 of Congress \u2064action against Attorney General Merrick Garland for not releasing audio recordings related to President Biden&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/doj-asks-supreme-court-to-reject-trump-request-in-fbi-classified-documents-case\/\" title=\"DOJ Asks Supreme Court to Reject Trump Request in FBI Classified Documents Case\">classified documents case<\/a>. The resolution\u2062 will\u2063 proceed to a \u2062full House\u200c vote. The Justice Department asserted executive privilege \u200bover the recordings. If passed, a criminal referral may follow,\u2063 though it may not \u2063lead \u2064to criminal proceedings due to Garland&#8217;s position. House GOP members and Dems debated the need for the\u200b recordings during the\u200b hearing. \u200cHouse Republicans seek transparency, while Democrats accuse them of politicizing\u200d the issue.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>The <a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/house-judiciary-committee\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>House Judiciary Committee<\/a> voted to move forward with holding Attorney General <a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/merrick-garland\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Merrick Garland<\/a> in contempt of Congress on Thursday, one of two committees taking up the issue as part of a larger <a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/house-republicans\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>House Republican<\/a> effort to build an impeachment case against President <a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/joe-biden\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Joe Biden<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>Judiciary Committee members voted 18 to 15 to advance the contempt resolution against Garland for refusing to hand over audio recordings from special counsel <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/robert-k-hur\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Robert Hur<\/a>\u2019s interview with Biden related to his <a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/classified-documents\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>classified documents<\/a> case.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/house-oversight\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>House Oversight<\/a> Committee, the other committee taking up a contempt resolution, moved their meeting from Thursday morning to 8 p.m. on Thursday night to accommodate the attendance of several Oversight GOP members at former President <a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Donald Trump<\/a>\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-lawyer-predicts-hush-money-acquittal-if-he-has-impartial-jury\/\" title=\"Trump's attorney anticipates hush money acquittal with a fair jury\">hush money criminal trial<\/a> in New York.<\/p>\n<p>While Republicans traveled to the Empire State, Biden went on the offense ahead of the House Judiciary Committee\u2019s markup on the resolution. The Justice Department announced Thursday morning that the president was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3006125\/biden-asserts-executive-privilege-hur-tapes\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>asserting executive privilege<\/a> over the recordings, placing another roadblock in the way of House Republicans as they continue to argue with the DOJ over whether Congress should have access to the audio recording.<\/p>\n<p>Now that the contempt resolution has been advanced, it will go to the floor for a full House vote to be scheduled by House leadership. If it passes the full House, a criminal referral is made to the U.S. attorney\u2019s office in Washington, D.C., which must then weigh whether to move forward with prosecution. <\/p>\n<p>The committee\u2019s contempt resolution would likely not result in any criminal proceedings for Garland, as he heads the Justice Department. Spokespeople for the DOJ have disputed the legitimacy of the committee\u2019s efforts and warned that releasing audio would have a chilling effect on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/burchett-more-witnesses-have-come-forward-since-uap-hearing-select-committee-with-subpoena-authority-requested\/\" title=\"Burchett: Additional witnesses step forward post-UAP hearing; calls for 'select committee' with subpoena power.\">witnesses coming forward<\/a> to law enforcement.<\/p>\n<p>House GOP members on the Judiciary Committee spent most of the hearing declaring that the executive branch \u201cdoesn\u2019t get to choose\u201d what evidence they provide to the committee, while House Democrats blasted Republicans for politicizing the issue and wanting the audio recording for \u201cDonald Trump\u2019s campaign commercials\u201d or use Biden\u2019s stutter to \u201csmear\u201d him.<\/p>\n<p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wisconsins-democrat-governor-appointed-a-violent-felon-to-the-state-juvenile-justice-commission\/\" title=\"Wisconsin\u2019s Democrat Governor Appointed A Violent Felon To The State Juvenile Justice Commission\">major talking point<\/a> during the hearing was whether Republicans displayed a need for the audio recording while already possessing Hur\u2019s interview transcript. Some Judiciary GOP members claimed the transcript could have been altered and fake during the hearing, and others said executive privilege is not applicable during an impeachment inquiry.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat tape must be quite something if<strong> <\/strong>the administration of the president has decided to assert executive privilege to keep it from the committee in the course of an impeachment inquiry. Think about it,\u201d Rep. Dan Bishop (R-NC) said. \u201cThe basis for withholding the audio recording, when the transcript has been furnished, must rest on something about the recording that is distinct from the information contained in the transcript.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Though the president\u2019s conduct posed \u201cserious risks to national security,\u201d Hur said in his report that he did not charge Biden because he believed a jury would find him a \u201csympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory\u201d and likely not convict him for this reason. <\/p>\n<p>Republicans latched onto those lines quickly as evidence that the president is not mentally competent to serve as commander-in-chief, believing that the audio recording will shed light on Biden\u2019s mannerisms, colloquialisms, and ability to answer questions.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey don\u2019t get to choose,\u201d Rep. Kelly Armstrong (R-ND) said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe person providing the evidence doesn\u2019t get to choose the manner in form in which the evidence is provided. \u2026 There\u2019s a difference between a transcript and a video and audio,\u201d Armstrong continued. \u201cAnd I don\u2019t possibly understand the argument of \u2018we\u2019ll release the transcript, but we won\u2019t release the tapes.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rep. Glenn Ivey (D-MD) pushed back against Republicans\u2019 reasoning for wanting the audio recording, arguing that Hur specified the differences in Biden\u2019s classified documents case compared to Trump\u2019s case.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s a reason Trump sits alone, or will sit alone at this criminal trial that\u2019s upcoming \u2014 it\u2019s because he acted to obstruct justice. Biden and [Mike] Pence did not,\u201d Ivey said.<\/p>\n<p>Ivey also argued that Republicans did not raise concerns with Hur about lying or altering his findings when the special counsel <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/2917951\/takeaways-robert-hur-testimony-biden-classified-documents\/\">testified on Capitol Hill<\/a> in March.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said, \u2018No, I\u2019m not trying to hide anything. I\u2019m not trying to protect the president. We\u2019re not trying to slant anything. I did this. I called the balls and strikes as I saw him,&#8217;\u201d Ivey said, referring to Hur. \u201cAnd you know, I think it\u2019s a bit of a smear to sort of suggest otherwise. And it\u2019s a little unfair to do it now when he\u2019s not here, when you had the chance to do it when he was here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>During the hearing, Democrats slammed Republicans who skipped out on the markup to attend Trump\u2019s trial. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s nice to see that some of my colleagues on the other side can make it today,\u201d Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) said. \u201cI don\u2019t know if that means that there weren\u2019t enough seats in the courtroom in New York.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know some members will miss this vote, because they want to be at the president\u2019s trial, and I don\u2019t think that anything could animate the phrase \u2018do nothing Congress\u2019 more than missing votes and canceling hearings to go up and be a spectator at your cult leader\u2019s trial,\u201d Swalwell added. \u201cThat is the definition of \u2018do nothing Congress.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>However, Republicans like Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ) continuously criticized House Democrats for bringing the discussion to Trump and his hush money trial.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s not why we\u2019re here,\u201d Van Drew said. \u201c\u2026The issue is, this committee feels that it needs an audio transcript because the charges, the concerns, are so serious.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI wish we didn\u2019t have to have this hearing either,\u201d Van Drew added later. \u201cThe chairman wouldn\u2019t have called this hearing if simply [the DOJ] had said, \u2018Yes, you can have the video recordings, you can actually check out his demeanor.&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The House Judiciary Committee voted to advance a contempt of Congress action against Attorney General Merrick Garland on Thursday. This decision, part of a broader House Republican strategy to construct an impeachment case against President Joe Biden, saw Judiciary Committee members vote 18 to 15 in favor of moving forward<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2648,"featured_media":2246121,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/AP24107559736509-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2246120","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/AP24107559736509-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2246120","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2648"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2246120"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2246120\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2246121"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2246120"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2246120"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2246120"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}