Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) said Thursday that lawmakers will issue subpoenas “in days” to compel individuals to testify over their involvement in the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
“What we’re continuing to find … is additional information from DOJ and FBI that has literally been hidden from Congress’s oversight role for nine months,” Meadows said on Hill.TV’s “Rising.”
“So we’re at the point where the frustration has reached a level that we’ve got to deal with it,” he continued. “Issuing subpoenas to compel people to come in and testify — some of them who really I think want to testify, want to make sure that we clean this up — will be actually forthcoming in days where we’ll get them to come in.”
Meadows, who leads the House Freedom Caucus, has been among the most vocal lawmakers in his criticism of the Justice Department and its handling of the Russia probe. He and other conservatives have eagerly pursued access to DOJ documents.
While the conservative lawmakers have received thousands of documents from the agency, they say they have not been able to review key documents nor have they received as many documents as they’ve requested, leading to rising tensions between Republicans and federal officials.
Meadows and Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) introduced a legislative measure last week seeking to compel the DOJ to comply with outstanding congressional subpoenas related to the FBI’s decisionmaking during the 2016 election, including its handling of the probe into 2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server while secretary of State.
Meadows and other conservatives have been rebuffed by the DOJ in their document requests this year, creating a rift between lawmakers and federal officials.
Lawmakers have requested the materials as part of an ongoing effort to uncover alleged bias within the FBI and DOJ against President Trump.
— Brett Samuels
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