Washington, D.C. -Today, Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, the Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, sent a letter to Chairman Trey Gowdy on behalf of all of the Democratic Members of the Committee requesting that he place six motions for subpoenas on the agenda for the Committee’s upcoming business meeting this Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017.
“I understand that you personally may disagree with our requests, but all of our Committee Members deserve the opportunity to debate and vote on these motions, rather than you unilaterally blocking their consideration. House rules provide for subpoenas to be issued by a vote of the full Committee, and we have asked for the opportunity to do so. Many Members of the Committee believe that our Constitutional obligation to conduct rigorous oversight does not depend on who sits in the White House, and all we ask is that you let us offer these motions, debate them, and hold a vote," Cummings wrote.
Democratic staff previously submitted the same request to Gowdy’s staff on Oct. 20, 2017, that he place six motions for subpoenas on the agenda for the business meeting scheduled for this Thursday, but received no official response. Instead, last night Gowdy circulated an agenda for Thursday’s business meeting that did not include any of the six subpoena motions that Democrats requested.
For each of the six subpoena requests, Cummings and other Committee Members previously sent Gowdy separate, detailed letters setting forth the specific bases for the motions and requesting a Committee vote if Gowdy declined to issue a subpoena:
* White House Withholding Documents on Flynn’s Foreign Contacts: On Oct. 18, 2017, all Democratic Committee Members wrote to Gowdy requesting that he issue a subpoena to compel the White House to produce documents it is withholding relating to former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn in response to the Committee’s bipartisan request, or to allow Committee Members to vote on a motion to issue the subpoena.
* White House Withholding Documents on Personal Email Use by Top Aides: On Oct. 20, 2017, Cummings wrote to request that Gowdy join him in demanding full White House compliance with the bipartisan letter that they sent on Sept. 25, 2017, seeking the identities of all White House officials who have used personal email for official business, as well as other information, or to allow Committee Members to vote on a subpoena.
* Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump Withholding Documents on Emails: On Oct. 23, 2017, Cummings wrote to request that Gowdy join two previous letters he sent requesting documents relating to Senior Advisor Jared Kushner and Advisor Ivanka Trump, their use of private email accounts and servers for government business in potential violation of the Presidential Records Act, and reports that they relocated their emails to Trump Organization servers in apparent violation of letters from this Committee. In the alternative, Cummings asked Gowdy to allow a Committee vote to subpoena the information.
* White House Withholding Documents on Hurricane Response: On Oct. 26, 2017, Cummings wrote to request that Gowdy reconsider his decision to reject the request from him and Rep. Stacey Plaskett to follow the example of the Committee’s former Chairman, Republican Tom Davis, and request documents from the White House as part of the Committee’s bipartisan investigation into the Trump Administration’s response to the hurricanes in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, or to allow all Committee Members to vote on a subpoena motion.
* Governor Snyder Withholding Documents on Flint Water Investigation: On Oct. 24, 2017, Cummings wrote to request that Gowdy issue a subpoena compelling Michigan Governor Rick Snyder to comply in full with the Committee’s bipartisan request for documents on Feb. 26, 2016, relating to the Flint water crisis, including all documents relating to when the Governor became aware of concerns relating to Legionnaires’ disease and lead in the water, or to allow a Committee vote to subpoena the Governor.
* Kushner Companies Withholding Documents on Alleged Housing Abuses: On Oct. 20, 2017, Cummings wrote to request that Gowdy place the full authority of the Committee behind a request that he and other Members of the Maryland Delegation sent on Aug. 18, 2017, requesting documents relating to multiple reports that the Kushner Companies failed to maintain rental units in the Baltimore region in compliance with Department of Housing and Urban Development quality standards, or to allow Committee Members to vote on a motion to subpoena the documents.
Gowdy never responded to any of these letters.
