Jan. 6 Committee Recommends Congress Hold Mark Meadows in Contempt

The January 6 committee has recommended that the U.S. House vote to hold former Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows in contempt of Congress.

The House committee investigating the Capitol Hill riot released a 51-page document on Sunday accusing Mark Meadows of willfully failing to comply with a second scheduled deposition last Wednesday. Democratic leaders have already pledged to bring the charge up for a vote on the House floor where Meadows will likely be held in contempt, according to the Hill.

“Mr. Meadows’s failure to appear for deposition testimony in the face of this clear advisement and warning by the Chairman, and after being given a second chance to cooperate with the Select Committee, constitutes a willful failure to comply with the subpoena,” the committee wrote.

Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), chair of the select committee investigating the January 6 attack on the Capitol, speaks as Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY), vice-chair of the select committee investigating the January 6 attack on the Capitol, Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) and Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) listen during a committee meeting on Capitol Hill on December 1, 2021, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Meadows, who was former President Donald Trump’s chief of staff during the day of the riot, is accusing the select committee of abusing its powers and undermining the executive privilege authority invoked by Trump and several members of his inner circle.

“Even if privileges were applicable to some aspects of Mr. Meadows’s testimony, he was required to appear before the Select Committee for his deposition, answer any questions concerning non-privileged information, and assert any such privilege on a question-by-question basis,” the committee wrote in its resolution.

In a letter to Meadows’ attorney George Terwilliger III, committee chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MI) charged that the committee had “no choice” but to move forward with “contempt proceedings.”

“The Select Committee is left with no choice but to advance contempt proceedings and recommend that the body in which Mr. Meadows once served refer him for criminal prosecution,” the letter said.

In a lawsuit filed last week, Meadows charged that the committee had unconstitutionally abused its powers and undermined the president’s executive privilege. As Joel Pollak of Breitbart News reported:

Meadows’s lawsuit points out that while the chair of the committee can order subpoenas, that authority is not absolute. H. Res. 503 requires the chair of the committee to consult with the ranking member before issuing a subpoena for a deposition. But the committee has no ranking Republican member, which could make the committee’s subpoenas invalid.

If Meadows’s lawsuit is successful, he could not only block his own subpoena, but could see the entire committee declared invalid. Pelosi and the Democrats would have to start over — this time, obeying the rules, with five Republican members.

White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows listens as US President Donald Trump holds a Make America Great Again rally as he campaigns in Gastonia, North Carolina, October 21, 2020. (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

However, the committee asserted that even if executive privilege were applicable, he still failed to “appear before the Select Committee for his deposition, answer any questions concerning non-privileged information, and assert any such privilege on a question-by-question basis.”

“After promising to appear, Mr. Meadows has now reversed course and resumed his contemptuous behavior. Mr. Meadows’s conduct in response to the Select Committee’s subpoena constitutes a violation of the contempt of Congress statutory provisions,” it added.

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