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But the growing conflict between Nadler and the Department of Justice now raises questions about the likelihood that Whitaker will appear in what may be his only testimony before Congress. While he was head of the Department of Justice, William Barr was on the road to the permanent Attorney General confirmed by the Senate next week.
In this letter, the Department of Justice blamed Nadler for allowing the subpoena "when the Committee had not yet asked him a single question" and suggested that the Democrats sought to "turn the audience into an ublic spectacle."
"The committee obviously seeks to ask questions about confidential presidential communications that no Attorney General should ever disclose in the circumstances", wrote Deputy Attorney General Stephen Boyd in the letter, obtained by CNN. [19659005] The letter described a number of questions that Whitaker was willing to answer and gave Nadler an hour. The deadline of Thursday to give assurance that he would not issue subpoenas to appear before or during Friday's hearing.
"The Acting Attorney General will testify that at no time has the White House been asking for, nor has it provided any promises or undertakings regarding the investigation of the Special advocate, "wrote Boyd. "With respect to the special advocate's investigation, the department has complied with its regulations." The Acting Attorney General will make it clear that the way the department worked with the Office of the Attorney General Special advocate has not changed. "
In a statement, Whitaker said he would be willing to testify with the assurance that the committee would not issue a subpoena and that it would "initiate negotiations to good faith before making such a decision. "
A senior Justice official said CNN does not believe the department is aware of any precedents for authorizing a subpoena prior to the interrogation.
"It's a violation of the agreement" and a "striking derogation from long-standing procedures". 19659003] Democrats approved granting Nadler the power to summon Whitaker over the Republicans' objection on Thursday, adopting the party's vote-to-line resolution, 23-13.
Nadler stated that it was necessary to authorize a subpoena for Whitaker because Whitaker had failed to say it A committee asked if the Trump administration would invoke the privilege over a series of questions that it intended to ask about Whitaker's conversations with the White House about Mueller's investigation and his decision not to recuse himself.
Nadler argued in a letter sent to Last month, Whitaker could not claim that the White House was reserving the right to claim the privilege of the executive to avoid answering these questions. He asked Whitaker to consult the White House before the hearing and to tell the committee if he would invoke the privilege.
"The subpoena will only be issued if it refuses to answer questions on a hypothetical privilege basis," Nadler said. "If he does not show up – although I'm waiting for him – but he refuses to answer the questions he should answer, we'll have the tools to make sure we can handle them properly." our responsibilities. "
Republicans criticized Nadler for pre-emptively scheduling a subpoena to a witness who voluntarily agreed to testify, claiming that it created a troubling precedent.
"A subpoena should only follow a break in the accommodation process and be a last resort against individuals seeking to thwart the legitimate oversight of this committee," said Doug Collins, Georgia's Representative. , the biggest Republican on the committee. "There was no breakdown here."
The Republicans have proposed an amendment proposed by representative Andy Biggs, of Arizona, to add Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein – a familiar target of the GOP, given his previous surveillance of the probe Mueller – Nadler's Assignation, which was rejected by Democrats.
Several Republicans of the committee have asked that the former president of the judiciary, Bob Goodlatte, Republican of Virginia, assigns Rosenstein's summons to the last congress, though it is not the only way to do so. finally did not appear.
Whitaker was absent. significant pre-hearing preparations, including briefings with each component of the Department of Justice and participation in several simulated hearings, according to officials.
dated with additional developments on Thursday.
