Politics

Judiciary Committee Approves Karl Rove Contempt of Congress Resolution

By Jesse Lee

From the Judiciary Committee:

Judiciary Committee Approves Karl Rove Contempt of Congress Resolution

(Washington, DC)- Today, the House Judiciary Committee approved a report and resolution recommending that the House of Representatives cite former White House Deputy Chief of Staff, Karl Rove, for contempt of Congress for failing to appear before the Committee as required by subpoena. The report and resolution passed by a vote of 20-14.

“Today?s vote was an important statement by this Committee that no person ? not even Karl Rove ? is above the law.” said Chairman John Conyers, Jr. “This week?s Inspector General report on the pervasive politicization of the Department of Justice particularly underscores the urgent need for Mr. Rove to testify before Congress. Any suggestion that the matters for which Mr. Rove was subpoenaed are not important, or that no Administration misconduct has been revealed, is just inconsistent with the facts. Our investigation has revealed Mr. Rove to be a key figure in the firings of US Attorneys, and the questions about his role in the Siegelman case only continue to mount.”

“Today’s vote demonstrates that the House will not tolerate Mr. Rove’s flawed excuses for avoiding his responsibility to obey a Congressional subpoena,” said Rep. Linda Sánchez, Chair of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law. “We are serious about defending the legislative branch’s constitutional oversight role, and it’s time for Mr. Rove to get serious about following the law.”

Below are links to materials related to today’s vote.

Committee Contempt Report (pdf) >>
Judiciary Committee Markup Memo (pdf) >>
Conyers Opening Statement (pdf) >>
Sánchez Opening Statement >>

Full post as published by The Gavel on July 30, 2008 (boomark / email).