US Attorney General Merrick Garland on Friday pushed back against members of the US House Select Committee investigating the insurrection after the 9-member panel issued a stern memo to the US Department of Justice, urging Garland and the department to “act swiftly” and pursue criminal charges against two Trump-era advisers previously determined to be in contempt of Congress.
“The only pressure I feel, and the only pressure that our line prosecutors feel, is to do the right thing. That means we follow the facts and the law, wherever they may lead,” said Garland, responding to a query about whether he and the federal agency feel pressure following this week’s developments in a Central California court.
US District Judge David Carter wrote in a Monday filing that it was “more likely than not that President Trump corruptly attempted to obstruct” the certification of Electoral College votes on January 6, 2021. The civil case resulted in right-wing attorney John Eastman was being ordered to turn over a total of 101 relevant emails to the 9-member congressional panel.
While Carter’s comments did not directly impact the former US president in a legal sense, the federal judge’s comments were cited by several members of the House Select Committee. The group notably voted to recommend Trump-era trade adviser Peter Navarro and former White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Communications Dan Scavino for criminal contempt charges after both refused to cooperate with a congressional subpoena, and failed to appear at scheduled depositions.
Although Scavino was among the first wave of subpoenas issued by the committee in September 2021, the long-time Trump ally was granted a total of six extensions to reschedule his deposition and turn over documents.
Both recommendations now advance to a full vote in the House. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer has vowed to bring the matters forward “as soon as the schedule permits.”
The 9-member panel lacks the authority to directly charge individuals with crimes, but is permitted to submit a recommendation of potential offenses to the full House of Representatives, where lawmakers vote on whether to refer the charge to the US Department of Justice.
“This committee is doing its job,” said Select Committee member Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) during the group’s March 28 business meeting. “The Department of Justice needs to do theirs.”
Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY), one of two House Republicans on the panel, also called for the DoJ to pursue the recommended charges, proclaiming that the ongoing situation in Ukraine should be a reminder of “what happens when authoritarians rule.”
Committee Chair Bennie Thompson (D-MS) and Cheney both highlighted Judge Carter’s ruling in their referral recommendation.
Prior to Monday’s vote, the panel already advanced three criminal referrals. However, as of this article’s publication, the recommendation against ex-White House strategist Steve Bannon is the only referral to result in a federal indictment.
Steve Bannon, talk show host and former White House advisor to former President Donald Trump, looks on as he leaves an appearance in U.S. District Court after being indicted for refusal to comply with a congressional subpoena over the January 6 attacks on the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., November 15, 2021.
© REUTERS / Kevin Lamarque
Contempt referrals were also issued against ex-DOJ official Jeffrey Clark and former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows. Clark’s referral did not make it to the House floor after he agreed to sit for a deposition in which he pleaded the Fifth Amendment over 100 times.
Garland did not offer reporters much when asked about the status of the recommendation against Meadows, as the DoJ does not “comment on ongoing referrals.”
“We follow the facts and the law wherever they lead, and that’s all I can say about the investigation,” Garland told reporters on Friday. “The best way to undermine an investigation is to say things out of court about how they’re going.”
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