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Anna Paulina Luna will force an inherent contempt of Congress vote on Attorney General Merrick Garland Friday. Garland dismissed a previous contempt vote after Biden’s loyal lieutenant refused to turn over evidence that would show the president was unfit for office. The House of Representatives voted on June 12 to hold Garland in inherent contempt of Congress for refusing to reply to subpoenas.
Luna thinks Garland is wrong
Garland refused to turn over records relating to Special Counsel Robert Hur’s investigation of Biden willfully mishandling classified information. Garland had provided written transcripts of the Biden interview but Republicans said that wasn’t good enough because Hur was shocked at the president’s poor memory.
Subpoenas were requested for audio recordings of that interview that Garland declined, resulting in a swift contempt vote that easily cleared 216 to 207. On the day that vote took place the Department of Justice declared the AG was immune because Biden had claimed executive privilege over the recordings May 16, 2024. This was before the Judiciary and Oversight Committees marked their contempt resolutions.
The DOJ said it would ignore the vote so Luna pushed toward alternatives, including inherent contempt. Inherent contempt was established in 1957 so the House Sergeant-at-Arms could detain anyone refusing a subpoena. This bypasses executive brand and DOJ.
This brings Garland in
This forces Garland to come in. The Sergeant-at-Arms can bring “Garland to the House for questioning and compel him to produce the requested evidence.”
Problem is Luna might have trouble getting support for this. Republican leadership didn’t want to be embarrassed again after not being able to impeach the Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
Three Republicans refused to impeach Mayorkas. One of those three has resigned from Congress to take a lucrative job in the private sector.
The administration isn’t sitting still
The administration isn’t just taking this on the chin. Luna says they’re pressuring Republicans to vote against it.
Luna put out a statement: “This is the very definition of corruption. [Garland] believes he is above the law and can tell elected members of Congress what to do. My message to Garland is straightforward: release the tapes to Congress and let us listen to them.”
This procedure with Garland comes as one Trump advisor is headed to prison and the other is already in prison. Steve Bannon is imprisoned for defying a subpoena issued by Nancy Pelosi for the January 6 committee. The other is Peter Navarro.
