Jul 02, 2012 · The Attorney General of the United States has been held in contempt of Congress, both civil and criminal. For the first time in our nation’s 236 year history, the top law enforcement officer of this country has seen fit to arrogantly ignore the mandates of Congress.
But federal prosecutors, including all 93 U.S. attorneys, work for the attorney general and are under no legal obligation to pursue a contempt charge against him. As a 2019 Congressional Research Service report on enforcing congressional subpoenas explains, prosecutors have discretion, even when a statute uses mandatory language. Recent history is sprinkled with such …
The US House of Representatives has voted to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress. The move follows his alleged refusal to hand over documents related to a …
Jun 29, 2012 · The vote, which holds the attorney general in criminal contempt, was followed by a second vote that held Holder in civil contempt of Congress. The civil contempt vote allows Congress to go to ...
Under this statute the wrongful refusal to comply with a congressional subpoena is made punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 and imprisonment for up to one year. A committee may vote to seek a contempt citation against a recalcitrant witness. This action is then reported to the House.
Congress has the power to restrain such individuals from interfering with its actions. It is a form of contempt, similar to contempt of court. Congress's ability to hold individuals in contempt who interfere with its duties is considered an implied power of the legislature.
Partial list of those held in contempt since 1975PersonSubcommittee/CommitteeChad Wolf, United States Secretary of Homeland SecuritySeptember 17, 2020 House Homeland Security CommitteeStephen K. BannonOctober 18, 2021 House Select Committee on the January 6 AttackMark Meadows19 more rows
Obstruction of Congress. Congressional Research Service. Summary. Obstruction of justice is the frustration of governmental purposes by violence, corruption, destruction of evidence, or deceit. It is a federal crime.
House holds William Barr, Wilbur Ross in criminal contempt of Congress. It's only the second time in U.S. history that Congress held a sitting Cabinet official in contempt of Congress.
The House general counsel has already filed suit to obtain Trump’s tax returns from the IRS, and Democrats gearing up for court action to enforce the Judiciary Committee’s subpoenas for testimony from ex-Trump aides, including former White House Counsel Don McGahn and former communications director Hope Hicks.
The 230-198 vote to hold Barr and Ross in criminal contempt of Congress is largely symbolic, as President Donald Trump’s DOJ will not act on the request. But it reflects House Democrats’ frustration over the administration’s defiance of the House Oversight and Reform Committee’s subpoenas seeking information about failed efforts to add ...
Democrats have accused the Trump administration — and Ross in particular — of lying about the origins of the citizenship question, and they uniformly oppose it because they say it would result in an under-count in immigrant-heavy communities.
The Justice Department had said it could not legally turn over the documents, citing “the deliberative process” and “attorney-client communications.”. In a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) ahead of Wednesday’s vote, Barr and Ross decried Democrats’ move to hold them in criminal contempt.
John Dean (R) White House Counsel, convicted of obstruction of justice, later reduced to felony offenses and served 4 months. Dwight Chapin (R) Secretary to the President of the United States, convicted of perjury. Herbert W. Kalmbach (R) Nixon's Personal Attorney, guilty of corrupt practices, 191 days in jail.
Although the convicted politicians are arranged by presidential terms in chronological order, many of the crimes have little or no connection to who is president. Since the passage of 20th Amendment on January 23, 1933, presidential terms have begun on January 20 of the year following the presidential election; prior to that, they began on March 4.
Thomas Porteous (D), Federal Judge of the U.S. Eastern District of Louisiana was impeached, convicted and removed from office December 8, 2010, on charges of bribery and lying to Congress (2010).
The House Ethics Committee ordered Richardson to pay a fine of $10,000 (2012).
Iran–Contra affair (1985–1986); A secret sale of arms to Iran, to secure the release of hostages and allow U.S. intelligence agencies to fund the Nicaraguan Contras, in violation of the Boland Amendment. Elliott Abrams (R) Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs, convicted of withholding evidence.
Harry Claiborne (D), Federal District court Judge was tried and convicted of federal tax evasion; he served over one year in prison (1983). He was later impeached by the House, convicted by the Senate and removed from office (1986).
Earl Butz (R) United States Secretary of Agriculture. He was charged with failing to report more than $148,000 in 1978. Butz pleaded guilty to the tax evasion charge and was sentenced to 30 days in jail and five years of probation and was ordered to make restitution. He served 25 days behind bars before his release.