House GOP votes to hold Attorney General Garland in contempt over Biden audio recordings
CNN
House Republicans voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over the audio recordings of President Joe Biden’s interviews with former special counsel Robert Hur, who investigated Biden’s handling of classified material and declined to bring charges.
House Republicans voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over the audio recordings of President Joe Biden’s interviews with former special counsel Robert Hur, who investigated Biden’s handling of classified material and declined to bring charges. The vote marks a major escalation in a monthslong dispute over the recordings between House Republicans and the executive branch that came after Biden asserted executive privilege over the files. The vote was 216 to 207 with one Republican – Rep. Dave Joyce of Ohio – voting against it. Ahead of the vote, Garland released an op-ed declaring that he would not be intimidated by “baseless, personal and dangerous” attacks, echoing the defiant stance he had while being grilled by Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee earlier this month. Now that the contempt resolution against Garland has succeeded, House Speaker Mike Johnson will certify the report to the United States attorney for the District of Columbia. Under law, this certification then requires the US attorney to “bring the matter before the grand jury for its action,” but the Justice Department will also make its own determinations for prosecuting. Democrats have used the process several times as they ran into uncooperative allies and former aides to Trump during their investigation into the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol. The Department of Justice ultimately did not pursue charges against Trump aide Dan Scavino and former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows. But federal prosecutors did take two Trump allies, Stephen Bannon and former White House trade adviser Peter Navarro to trial on the criminal contempt charges. Holding the nation’s top law enforcement officer in contempt builds on Republican allegations that the Justice Department has been weaponized against conservatives, claims that have been particularly ratcheted up in the wake of former President Donald Trump’s conviction in New York for falsifying business records.
White House officials are heaping blame on DC US Attorney Jeanine Pirro over her office’s criminal investigation into Fed Chair Jerome Powell, faulting her for blindsiding them with an inquiry that has forced the administration into a dayslong damage control campaign, four people familiar with the matter told CNN.
The interim Venezuelan government has freed at least four Americans who were imprisoned in Venezuela, a source familiar with the matter told CNN on Tuesday.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX is now providing free internet access via its Starlink satellite service to users in Iran as the country’s regime continues its bloody crackdown on anti-government protests, according to a tech expert in touch with Iranian Starlink users.
The aircraft used in the US military’s first strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean, a strike which has drawn intense scrutiny and resulted in numerous Congressional briefings, was painted as a civilian aircraft and was part of a closely guarded classified program, sources familiar with the program told CNN. Its use “immediately drew scrutiny and real concerns” from lawmakers, one of the sources familiar said, and legislators began asking questions about the aircraft during briefings in September.
DOJ pleads with lawyers to get through ‘grind’ of Epstein files as criticism of redactions continues
“It is a grind,” the head of the Justice Department’s criminal division said in an email. “While we certainly encourage aggressive overachievers, we need reviewers to hit the 1,000-page mark each day.”
A new classified legal opinion produced by the Justice Department argues that President Donald Trump was not limited by domestic law when approving the US operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro because of his constitutional authority as commander-in-chief and that he is not constrained by international law when it comes to carrying out law enforcement operations overseas, according to sources who have read the memo.
President Donald Trump is working to tighten his grip on his party this week as he faces an unusual threat from Congress: an embarrassing rebuke of his military actions overseas.
Bill and Hillary Clinton refused to appear on Capitol Hill Tuesday to testify in Congress’ Jeffrey Epstein probe in the face of threats from the House Oversight Committee to hold them in contempt.
Former teacher Arnulfo Reyes was questioned repeatedly in court Tuesday about how doors were left open at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, before a gunman entered in May 2022 and killed 21 children and teachers.
The Trump administration does not know the whereabouts of 137 Venezuelans it unlawfully deported last year, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, adding that attempting to offer them due process would impact US foreign policy interests in the country.
Around 1,000 additional US Customs and Border Protection agents are expected to deploy to Minneapolis, Minnesota, according to two federal law enforcement sources. Follow for live updates.
President Donald Trump’s efforts to leverage the Justice Department for political purposes and to exact retribution against his perceived foes haven’t suffered from a series of setbacks.
Minnesota and Illinois separately filed lawsuits Monday against the Trump administration, arguing the president’s immigration crackdown is terrorizing their communities and violating the Constitution.