Justice Department refuses to charge Attorney General Merrick Garland after House contempt vote
WASHINGTON - The Justice Department on Friday notified House Speaker Mike Johnson it wouldn’t prosecute Attorney General Merrick Garland for contempt of Congress despite this week's House vote, arguing his defiance of a subpoena “did not constitute a crime.”
The dispute centers around a subpoena for the recording of President Joe Biden’s interview with special counsel Robert Hur about classified documents found in his home. Hur decided not to charge Biden with any federal crimes. The president asserted executive privilege to keep the recording of their conversation confidential.
DOJ provided the House with a transcript of the Biden interview and Hur testified about his decision. But Republican lawmakers demanded to hear the president's responses as part of their inquiry to determine whether he is fit to be president.
Johnson said Friday that the House disagrees with the Justice Department’s decision and would send its contempt report to the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia to consider charges against Garland. Johnson said the House would also ask the federal courts to enforce the subpoena.
“This is yet another example of the two-tier system of justice brought to us by the Biden Administration,” Johnson said.
The House voted 216-207 on Wednesday to hold Garland in contempt and recommend the department charge him.
But Assistant Attorney General Carlos Felipe Uriarte explained the department’s longstanding policy that it isn’t considered a crime when agencies refuse to comply with congressional subpoenas after a president has asserted executive privilege. He noted several examples of administration officials defying subpoenas:
- White House Chief of Staff Joshua Bolten and White House counsel Harriett Miers during then-President George W. Bush’s administration. The House Judiciary Committee sought to question Bolten and Miers about the dismissal of U.S. attorneys.
- Attorney General Eric Holder during then-President Barack Obama’s administration. The committee sought to question Holder about a gun trafficking investigation called Fast and Furious.
- Attorney General Bill Barr during then-President Donald Trump’s administration. The House Oversight and Reform Committee sought to question Barr about a citizenship question added to the 2020 Census.
The department prosecuted none of those officials.
“Consistent with this longstanding position and uniform practice, the Department has determined that the responses by Attorney General Garland to the subpoenas issued by the Committees did not constitute a crime, and accordingly the Department will not bring the congressional contempt citation before a grand jury or take any other action to prosecute the Attorney General," Uriarte wrote.