(OurNationNews.com) Representative Anna Paulina Luna plans to force a vote to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in “inherent contempt” for refusing to provide the recording of Robert Hur’s interview with President Joe Biden.
President Biden was being investigated for his alleged mishandling of classified documents by Hur. Hur’s report determined that Biden was confused and not mentally fit to stand trial. The House of Representatives already voted to hold AG Garland in criminal contempt, which simply refers him to the agency he heads.
The Department of Justice decided not to prosecute Garland, so inherent contempt is the next tool available to the House of Representatives to enforce compliance.
The vote on inherent contempt would give the House Sergeant at Arms authority to arrest Garland and bring him before the House of Representatives for a trial. If he was determined to be guilty, he could be put into detention. Representative Luna said the only method they have to ensure compliance is to use inherent contempt to force Garland to stand trial.
The last time the House used inherent contempt was in 1934 when attorney William MacCracken failed to comply with a subpoena request. During the investigation of 2016 election interference by Russia, Democrats in the House discussed the option of using inherent contempt to compel Trump-associated individuals to comply with subpoena requests.
Garland released a full transcript of the Hur interviews with President Biden, but has refused to provide the audio files. He said releasing the audio of the interviews could cause witnesses to refuse testimony in future DOJ investigations. Democrats have speculated that Republicans want the tapes to run anti-Biden ads during the election campaign season.
Representative Kat Cammack said that she supports using inherent contempt against AG Garland, but expects there won’t be a vote held. Cammack said the resolution will most likely get tabled and the House will not have a chance to vote. She said they need to think of another strategy moving forward.
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