Ted Lieu calling for inherent contempt

[Beachnutt]

on mark meadows
https://mobile.twitter.com/tedlieu/status/1468279127027314688

[Poiuyt]

2. Meadows, Bannon, et al are just trying to delay things until the Republicans take the House

[wnylib]

3. What is inherent contempt?

[madville]

4. Basically Congress enforces it themselves

They have their sergeant at arms take the person into custody and hold them until they testify or produce documents, etc.

It’s been a fantasy for some folks for awhile, of course if Republicans regain the House and start doing it the same folks will claim they are kidnapping people lol.

Sounds like more drama than it’s worth, let the courts and DOJ enforce contempt, like they’ve been doing most of the last century.

[wnylib]

7. thanks.

[orleans]

9. so... run out the clock? nt

[Laura PourMeADrink]

11. Definitely not just drama to the sponsors

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Ted W. Lieu and cosponsored by Rep. Demings, is also cosponsored by Reps. David Cicilline (D-RI), Jaime Raskin (D-MD), Madeline Dean (D-PA) and Joe Neguse (D-CO). All are members of the House Judiciary Committee.


https://demings.house.gov/media/press-releases/rep-demings-cosponsors-inherent-contempt-bill

Said Rep. Lieu, “It doesn't require a lot of imagination to see why this bill is necessary. Nearly every House committee has been blocked by the Trump Administration at one point or another from getting testimony and documents needed to conduct oversight. We're over a year into litigating multiple Congressional subpoenas in court. We have already held two cabinet officials in criminal contempt. All of this, and the American public still doesn't have answers about the extent of the Trump Administration's abuses of power. As a co-equal branch of government, it's our responsibility to serve as an independent check of the Executive branch. This bill enables us to hold those who refuse to abide by the law accountable.”

[FBaggins]

16. What else would you call it?

Pushing a bill that you know isn’t going anywhere sure sounds like “drama”.

Especially if the bill is unlikely to pass court muster if it somehow manages to pass.

[soldierant]

5. Inherent contempt is a means for Congress to use its own authority

to arrest the offender themselves and house him or her in Congress's own facility for incarceration untill the offender "purges" the contempt by testifying.

It requires some voting, of course. Rep. Lieu, I think, wants the committee to know there is support for the idea. Since it is a House committee, I don't think a vote would have to go to the Senate ... but I could be wrong.

[wnylib]

6. thanks.

[soldierant]

8. YVW.

More sources should be talking about it. A person as intelligent and engaged as you (since you are here, and smart enough to ask when you don't know) should have been exposed to the term by now ... evidently it's not getting covered as it should be.

[wnylib]

10. I was never aware of the term.

I only knew about the procedure for turning it over to DOJ since that has been done before over the years. Did not realize that there was an alternative.

[soldierant]

15. I didn't either, until some of the lawyers who have worked in politics started bring ing it up

- and then some non-legals in the media picked it up and mentioned it - very few - and abviously not enough- but it has been bruited for couple of months.

[Rhiannon12866]

13. Text:

Link to tweet

[Bev54]

14. The 1/6 committee did mention criminal as well as civil contempt

in their report.

[AmBlue]

17. I'm going to call my Congress critters and demand this

Sick of them playing tiddler KS with people like Bannon. So passed they are giving him TIL JULY!@