Committees Ready Subpoena for White House After Ukraine Documents Withheld for Weeks

Oct 2, 2019
Press Release

Washington, D.C. (Oct. 2, 2019)—Today, Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, the Chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, Rep. Adam Schiff, the Chairman of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and Rep. Eliot L. Engel, the Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs released a memo and draft subpoena compelling the White House to produce key documents as part of the House of Representatives’ impeachment inquiry.

The Committees are investigating the extent to which President Trump jeopardized national security by pressing Ukraine to interfere with our 2020 election and by withholding security assistance provided by Congress to help Ukraine counter Russian aggression, as well as any efforts to cover up these matters.

“Over the past several weeks, the Committees tried several times to obtain voluntary compliance with our requests for documents, but the White House has refused to engage with—or even respond to—the Committees,” the memo states.  

The White House  has refused to produce documents that were first requested more than three weeks ago on September 9, 2019.  The Chairmen sent a follow-up letter on September 24, 2019, warning that they would consider compulsory measures if the White House continued to refuse to comply.

“Only after overwhelming public pressure did the Trump Administration finally release the incriminating record of the President’s July 25, 2019, call with the Ukrainian President and reverse its misguided decision to block the whistleblower complaint submitted to the Inspector General of the Intelligence Community from being transmitted to Congress as required by federal law,” the memo continues.

The memo was sent by Chairman Cummings to Members of the Committee on Oversight and Reform in accordance with internal protocols.  The subpoena will be issued on Friday, October 4, 2019, under the Rules of the House of Representatives in exercise of its oversight and legislative jurisdiction and after consultation with the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.

“The White House’s flagrant disregard of multiple voluntary requests for documents—combined with stark and urgent warnings from the Inspector General about the gravity of these allegations—have left us with no choice but to issue this subpoena,” the memo reads.

The Committees are working in a coordinated and expeditious manner. 

On Friday, Chairman Engel issued a subpoena to the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and on Monday Chairman Schiff issued a subpoena to the President’s agent, Rudy Giuliani.

Click here to read the memo and draft subpoena to the White House.

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116th Congress