Tuesday House Oversight and Reform Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings (D-MD), announced the Committee’s intention to hold former White House Personnel Security Director Carl Kline in contempt when Kline, at the direction of the White House, failed to comply with a Congressional subpoena to sit for a deposition regarding Security Clearances.
In his statement Cummings explains, “The White House informed the Committee that it ordered Mr. Kline not to appear, but the President has not asserted any Constitutional or other privilege that would have relieved Mr. Kline of his legal obligation to testify.”
According to the statement Kline’s attorney “is trying to cast,” Kline as being “caught in the middle of a dispute between the Committee and the White House,” with the White House asserting that Kline is “not a party of interest.”
Cummings says that assertion is incorrect as Kline, who now works for the Department of Defense, stands accused of, “retaliating against a whistleblower who reported serious allegations of abuse to Congress.”
He went on to say that instead of the White House asserting privilege, they now seek, “to challenge the Committee’s authority to conduct depositions,” under a rule that Cumming’s notes has been used by both Republican and Democrat Chairman, he added, “The White House now seeks to stonewall this otherwise routine congressional process.”
Cummings says he intends to “consult with House Counsel and Committee Members about scheduling a vote on contempt,” he goes on to say, “I hope that Mr. Kline, in close consultation with his personal attorney, will carefully review his legal obligations, reconsider his refusal to appear, and begin cooperating with the Committee’s investigation.”
On Monday, Cummings sent a letter to White House Counsel Pat Cipollone, in which he explains, “The Committee has given the White House more than enough time to engage on a good faith basis, yet you have declined to do so.”
The White House’s order for Kline to ignore a Congressional Subpoena came just hours after it was reported that the White House was suing the Oversight Committee in an attempt to block a subpoena that requested years of President Trump’s financial records.
