Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker is testifying at a contentious hearing before the House Judiciary Committee Friday. Democrats have been grilling Whitaker, who is appearing before the committee for the first time as attorney general, on his interactions with President Trump and his oversight of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation. Here are some highlights so far from the hearing, which is currently in recess so that House members may vote:
- Republicans see today’s hearing as a “dog and pony show,” and the ranking Republican, Rep. Doug Collins, moved quickly to adjourn the hearing, which was voted down 24-10.
- Whitaker says he has not spoken with Mr. Trump about the Mueller probe and has given the White House no assurances about the probe. He also suggested he would exercise executive privilege over conversations with the president.
- On Thursday, the committee chairman, Rep. Jerry Nadler, and Whitaker squabbled over a subpoena threat — today, Nadler said that there was no need for a subpoena “for now,” since Whitaker showed up to testify.
Hearing in recess so members can vote
Whitaker to Nadler: Mr. Chairman your five minutes are up
In an exchange that shocked the room, Whitaker told Nadler that his five-minute time limit was up — an extremely rare comment for any witness, even the acting attorney general, to make to the chairman of a committee.
“Mr. Chairman, I can see that your five minutes is up,” Whitaker said, eliciting both laughs and gasps.
Whitaker says he hasn’t talked with Trump about Mueller probe
Answering questions from Nadler, Whitaker said he hasn’t spoken with Mr. Trump or senior White House officials about the Mueller probe.
Whitaker says he hasn’t given White House assurances on Mueller probe
Whitaker, in his opening remarks, said he hasn’t given the White House any assurances about Mueller’s probe, and the White House has not asked him to do so.
Top Republican tries to shut down the hearing
Top Republican on the committee Rep. Doug Collins asked to adjourn the hearing, a move that was rejected by a voice vote.
But then Republicans pushed for a roll call on the vote, forcing each member to go on the record. In total, 24 members voted against adjourning, and 10 voted for it.
“Bring your popcorn,” says animinated top Republican
Rep. Doug Collins, the top Republican on the committee, called the whole hearing a dog and pony show, and said they should have popcorn for everyone.
“Bring your popcorn,” Collins said, adding maybe they just “set up a popcorn machine” in the back.
Top Republican says this hearing is a “character assassination”
House Ranking Member Doug Collins, a Republican, started out his remarks with a fiery opening statement.
Collins said the hearing has “nothing to do” with Justice Department oversight, and simply comes down to a “character assasination.”
No need to resort to a subpoena — “for now,” Nadler says
Nadler mentioned the battle over whether Whitaker would show up, suggesting that since Whitaker showed up there isn’t a need to resort to a subpoena — “for now,” he added after pausing ever so briefly.
Nadler begins hearing right on time
Nader kicked off the hearing exactly at 9:30 a.m., first remembering the late Rep. John Dingell, whose passing was announced Thursday night.
Nadler then launched into his opening statement. Here is the prepared text of some of that opening statement:
| “Your failure to respond fully to our questions here today in no way limits the ability of this Committee to get the answers in the long run–even if you are a private citizen when we finally learn the truth. And although I am willing to work with the Department to obtain this information, I will not allow that process to drag out for weeks and months. The time for this Administration to postpone accountability is over.”
“We have laid all of the groundwork for this hearing out in the open. We have given you months to prepare. We have publicly documented every request we have made to you. We have provided our Republican colleagues with a meaningful opportunity to weigh in on the process. We have nothing to hide from you. We hope you have nothing to hide from us.” |
Read Whitaker’s prepared testimony
Here is Whitaker’s testimony, as prepared.
Whitaker suggests he will exercise executive privilege over conversations with Trump
Whitaker, in his opening testimony, said he will indeed exert executive privilege over his conversations with the president.
“Although I cannot speak about my communications with the president, I do want to make clear that I am personally committed to the integrity of the Department of Justice,” Whitaker wrote.
Democrats allege Whitaker failed to return funds for victims
House Democrats allege in a letter sent Friday morning that Whitaker failed to return thousands of dollars that should have been distributed to the victims of a scam by World Patent Marketing.
Reps. Elijah E. Cummings, Jerrold Nadler, Frank Pallone Jr., and Adam Schiff, all committee chairmen, sent a letter to Whitaker looking for full compliance with a request sent in mid-November about his involvement with the company. The Democrats claim new records prove Whitaker failed to return the money intended to be distributed to victims.
“[Y]ou have failed to respond to that (Nov. 14) letter or provide a single document that we requested,” their letter said. “Since that time, we have obtained new documents showing that you failed to return thousands of dollars that were supposed to be distributed to the victims of World Patent Marketing’s alleged fraud, despite your involvement with Mr. Cooper in handling complaints from individuals of the company’s actions.”
Will Whitaker invoke executive privilege?
What remains to be seen is whether — or perhaps more likely, how frequently — Whitaker will invoke executive privilege.
But Democrats, and perhaps Republicans, are sure to press him on a slew of matters, including his involvement with Mueller’s investigation and interactions with the president in recent months. Whitaker is still the nation’s top law enforcement officer until the Senate confirms attorney general nominee William Barr.
In the letter Nadler sent Whitaker last week, he said he wants to ask about his decision not to recuse himself from the special counsel’s investigation, whether he has ever been briefed on the special counsel’s investigation, whether Mr. Trump contacted him about former Trump attorney Michael Cohen, and whether Mr. Trump ever talked about firing or reassigning personnel in the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, among other things.
Nadler also told Whitaker that he would “view with considerable skepticism any effort to decline to answer on the basis that the inquiry is related to an ongoing criminal investigation.”
