Ex-Pres. Donald Trump's Former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows Sues House Select Committee as They Advance for Contempt Charges Against Him
Former President Donald Trump's ex-White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows, moved to sue the House Select Committee as well as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday, as they advance to hold him for contempt charges.
According to CBS News, the lawsuit filed by Meadows asked the court in Washington D.C. to nullify all the subpoenas filed by the House Select Committee against his testimony and phone records.
The said phone records were reportedly held by Verizon, the carrier of his then-personal cell phone, which Meadows called "overly broad and unduly burdensome," CNBC reported.
The complaint also mentioned that Donald Trump's ally was placed in an "untenable position," explaining that he was expected to choose between "conflicting" privilege claims, which the suit calls a "risk enforcement" of the subpoena issued against him.
Mark Meadows also questioned in the complaint Congressman Bennie Thompson's power to issue subpoenas. He contended that the subpoena issued against him is "an unconstitutional attempt" to assume the authority of the Executive Branch in enforcing the law. Furthermore, the 43-page complaint from Meadows also mentioned that former President Donald Trump instructed the ex-White House chief of staff in early October not to comply with the subpoena for his documents and testimony, as he explained that those documents were covered by executive privilege.
However, President Joe Biden put on hold Trump's privilege claims, prompting the ex-president to file his own lawsuit against the House Select Committee.
House Select Committee 'No Choice" but to Hold Mark Meadows for Contempt Charges
The lawsuit or complaint filed by Mark Meadows came the same day as the House Select Committee, through Congressman Bennie Thompson, said in a letter that they have "no choice" but to hold the former White House chief of staff in contempt charges.
"The Select Committee is left with no choice but to advance contempt proceedings and recommend that the body in which Mr. Meadows once served refer him for a criminal prosecution," Thompson said.
Meadows is known to be the third Trump ally to face the threat of contempt proceeding. In the previous week, the House Select Committee voted to advance contempt charges for Ex-Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark.
Mark Meadows on House Select Committee
The plans of the House Select Committee to push for contempt charges against Mark Meadows came a day after the Trump ally said that he will stop cooperating with the panel that investigates the January 6 Capitol insurrection.
According to Meadows' attorney, George Terwilliger, his client believed he would not be answering questions that are protected by executive privilege. However, the attorney noted that the select committee implied that they wanted to address the said issue.
"As a result of a careful and deliberate consideration of these factors, we now must decline the opportunity to appear voluntarily for a deposition," Terwilliger noted.
This article is owned by Latin Post.
Written By: Joshua Summers
WATCH: January 6 Committee Moves Forward With Contempt Charges Against Mark Meadows - CBS News
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