The House Judiciary Committee gaveled in Tuesday to an empty witness chair for the second time this month after former White House counsel Don McGahn did not appear after he was subpoenaed.
Nadler told CNN’s Chris Cuomo on Monday evening that if McGahn didn’t appear, «the first thing we’re going to have to do is hold McGahn in contempt.»
Nadler said Tuesday that he was prepare to go to court to obtain McGahn’s testimony.
McGahn’s attorney William Burck told the committee on Monday that McGahn would not appear after the White House directed him not to testify, arguing he is immune from having to appear before Congress over his role as an adviser to the President.
«Under these circumstances, and also conscious of the duties he, as an attorney, owes to his former client, Mr. McGahn must decline to appear at the hearing tomorrow,» Burck wrote.
In instructing McGahn not to testify before the House Judiciary Committee, the White House cited a Justice Department opinion that says the President’s personal aides cannot be compelled to testify about their official work and have «absolute immunity» from congressional subpoenas.
Ultimately, the decision was made because the White House believed invoking immunity was the most straightforward argument to shield McGahn from testifying and create a scenario that would likely play out in the courts, which could take years to resolve and is a timeline that works in the administration’s favor.
