The Justice Department missed a deadline to submit documents ordered in a subpoena by the House Judiciary Committee, aggravating Republicans who were eager to see documents on a variety of issues, including the agency’s investigation of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s private email server.
Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., sent the subpoena to the DOJ two weeks ago, after the agency failed to respond to a request for the documents from Goodlatte and House Oversight Chairman Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., that was issued four months prior.
But the agency missed the noon deadline, according to the House Judiciary Committee.
“The Department of Justice has not yet complied with the subpoena and we are working with officials at DOJ to take immediate steps to comply with the subpoena and produce documents to the Committee,” a Republican House Judiciary Committee aide told the Washington Examiner.
The lack of response irked some Republicans, including Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., who called the DOJ’s actions “unacceptable.”
“We got no documents from the Department of Justice. Just a phone call. This is unacceptable — it’s time to stop the games. Turn over the documents to Congress and allow us to conduct oversight,” Meadows tweeted Thursday.
The deadline for the subpoena issued by Chairman Goodlatte was today at noon. We got no documents from the Department of Justice. Just a phone call.
This is unacceptable–it’s time to stop the games. Turn over the documents to Congress and allow us to conduct oversight.
— Mark Meadows (@RepMarkMeadows) April 5, 2018
The subpoena sought information on a variety of matters, including the documents concerning the investigation of Clinton’s private email server in 2016, possible abuses pertaining to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, and the FBI’s Office of Professional Responsibility recommendation that former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe be fired.
A committee aide warned that problems would persist if the documents were not turned over.
“Until DOJ gets serious about providing Congress the adequate resources to conduct real oversight, there will continue to be problems,” the committee aide told the Hill.
According to DOJ spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores, the DOH has “ongoing communication with Goodlatte.”
“He is aware of where his request stands,” she said, according to the Hill.
The Justice Department did not immediately respond to the Washington Examiner’s request for comment.
However, when the subpoena was first issued, a DOJ spokesperson said that the agency and the FBI were “committed to accommodating its oversight request in a manner consistent with the Department’s law enforcement and national security responsibility.”
Meanwhile, Democrats on the committee, such as Ranking Member Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., criticized the subpoena and argued it was intended to “divert attention from the chaos surrounding the Trump administration” and put the spotlight back on Clinton.
