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If the House votes to find Bryan Pagliano in contempt, his case could potentially head to court
Lawmakers have a packed schedule before they leave town until after the elections
House Republicans are pushing off a vote of contempt against the chief architect of Hillary Clinton’s private email server until after the election – clearing a partisan fight from their plate as they rush to avoid a government shutdown.
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee voted along party lines last week to hold Clinton IT staffer Bryan Pagliano in contempt for twice refusing to appear before the panel. A vote by the full House was on track for Thursday, but was delayed, two senior House Republican aides said Wednesday, on condition of anonymity because the decision has not been made public yet.
If the House votes to find Pagliano in contempt, his case could potentially head to court, where he could face a fine of up to $100,000 for refusing to appear, according to an Associated Press breakdown of the contempt process.
Republicans, including House Oversight Chairman Jason Chaffetz, have argued that Pagliano is needed to answer key questions about Clinton’s private email server. But Democrats, including Rep. Elijah Cummings, the top Democrat on the committee, have called it a political witch hunt.
But lawmakers have a packed schedule before they leave town until after the elections – including voting on whether to keep the government open and overhaul water infrastructure programs.
Pagliano’s lawyers last week accused Chaffetz of launching a witch hunt.
“A subpoena issued by a congressional committee is required by law to serve a valid legislative purpose – and there is none here. Your demand under the present circumstances, that Mr. Pagliano again assert his constitutional rights in front of video cameras six weeks before the presidential election, betrays a naked political agenda and furthers no valid legislative aim,” Pagliano’s lawyers wrote in a letter to the committee.
The Clinton campaign said Thursday it had not told Pagliano whether or not to testify, and blasted the oversight hearings into her private email server.
“He made his own decision, but we certainly have not prevailed upon anyone to cooperate with this sham of an inquiry,” Clinton spokesman Brian Fallon said. “The career officials at the FBI and the Justice Department already thoroughly investigated this matter, and closed the case with no further action, and Jason Chaffetz is abusing his office with this blatantly partisan attempt to hurt Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign.”
The House has limited subpoena powers but has used them recently.
House Republicans voted in 2014 to hold then-Internal Revenue Service official Lois Lerner – who was in the center of a controversy over targeting political groups – in contempt for refusing to answer questions. But a federal prosecutor declined to pursue charges against Lerner, arguing she never waived her right against self-incrimination.