Democrats on a House panel approved a criminal contempt resolution Wednesday against current and former White House officials because they refused to testify about fired federal prosecutors.
“This is pathetic,” said White House Press Secretary Tony Snow. “What you have right now is partisanship on Capitol Hill that quite often boils down to insults, insinuations, inquisitions and investigations.”
But Rep. John Conyers, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, which passed the resolution 22-17, said it was not “a partisan exercise.” The Michigan Democrat criticized President Bush for asserting executive privilege to block congressional subpoenas seeking testimony from White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten and former White House Counsel Harriet Miers.
“If we countenance a process where our subpoenas can be readily ignored, where a witness under a duly authorized subpoena doesn’t even have to bother to show up, where privilege can be asserted on the thinnest basis and in the broadest possible manner, then we’ve already lost,” Conyers said. “We won’t be able to get anybody in front of this committee or any other.”
Democrats want to publicly question Bush aides about their possible knowledge of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales’s decision to fire eight U.S. Attorneys. Although the move was legal, since federal prosecutors serve at the pleasure of the president, Democrats say it was overly political.
The the onus is now on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to decide whether the entire House should vote on the contempt resolution. Such a vote could occur next week or after Congress’s August recess.
Snow pointed out that Democrats have been invited to question White House aides behind closed doors without a transcript of the proceedings. But Democrats are holding out for public testimony that would be transcribed.
“Unfortunately, the White House has stubbornly refused to move off its opening position – an unreasonable offer that testimony be given without oath or transcript,” said Rep. Linda Sanchez of California, a Democratic member of the committee.
Snow expressed outrage at the contempt resolution.
“There is an attempt to do something that’s never been done in American history, which is to assail the concept of executive privilege, which hails back to the administration of George Washington, and, in particular, to use criminal contempt charges against the White House chief of staff and the White House legal counsel,” he said.
