House Judiciary committee authorizes subpoenas for Trump officials - AOL

WASHINGTON — The House Judiciary Committee on Thursday voted to authorize subpoenas targeting current and former Trump administration officials, as lawmakers seek documents from them as well as their testimony.

The panel voted along party lines 21-12 to approve a resolution that authorizes subpoenas for 12 people who are witnesses sought in the panel's investigation into potential obstruction and abuse of power by President Donald Trump. Separately, the resolution also authorizes Nadler to issue subpoenas relating to the Trump administration's family separation policies and practices at the southern border.

"These include government officials who worked or continue to work in close proximity to the president," Nadler said in his opening statement.

"These witnesses also include those outside of government who have critical information in connection with our investigation. We will not rest until we obtain their testimony and documents so this committee and Congress can do the work the Constitution, and the American people, expect of us."

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UNITED STATES - FEBRUARY 08: Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., arrives for a House Judiciary Committee hearing in Rayburn Building titled 'Oversight of the U.S. Department of Justice,' where acting attorney general Matthew Whitaker was questioned about special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation on Friday, February 8, 2019. (Photo By Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)

Ranking member Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA), speaks during the testimony of Acting U.S. Attorney General Matthew Whitaker before the House Judiciary Committee on the special counsel investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Friday, February 08, 2019. (Photo by Cheriss May/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Rep. Joe Neguse D-Colo., speaks with Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (vice chair), D-Pa., during a House Judiciary Committee debate to subpoena Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker as he appears before the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019 in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

UNITED STATES - APRIL 12: Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., participates in a press conference with House Judiciary Committee Democrats to announce new legislation to protect Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation on Thursday, April 12, 2018. (Photo By Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 08: U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch (D-FL) speaks during a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill February 08, 2019 in Washington, DC. Following a subpoena fight between committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and the Justice Department, Acting U.S. Attorney General Matthew Whitaker was questioned about his oversight of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

UNITED STATES - FEBRUARY 08: Reps. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., and Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., conduct a House Judiciary Committee hearing in Rayburn Building titled 'Oversight of the U.S. Department of Justice,' where acting attorney general Matthew Whitaker was questioned about special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation on Friday, February 8, 2019. (Photo By Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 08: U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-TX) speaks during a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill February 08, 2019 in Washington, DC. Following a subpoena fight between committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and the Justice Department, Acting U.S. Attorney General Matthew Whitaker was questioned about his oversight of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., speaks during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on gun violence, at Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 08: House Judiciary Committee member Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) questions Acting U.S. Attorney General Matthew Whitaker during an oversight hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill February 08, 2019 in Washington, DC. Following a subpoena fight between committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and the Justice Department, Whitaker was questioned about his oversight of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Rep. Louis Gohmert, R-Texas, asks a question during a joint hearing with testimony from Department of Justice Inspector General Michael Horowitz, during a joint House Committee on the Judiciary and House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform hearing examining Horowitz's report of the FBI's Clinton email probe, on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, June 19, 2018 in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 08: U.S. Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell (D-FL) speaks during a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill February 08, 2019 in Washington, DC. Following a subpoena fight between committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and the Justice Department, Acting U.S. Attorney General Matthew Whitaker was questioned about his oversight of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., chairman of the House subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations, makes a statement on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2015, as the House Judiciary Committee met to approve rare bipartisan legislation that would reduce prison time for some nonviolent drug offenders. The aim of the bipartisan bills is to reduce overcrowding in the nation's prisons, save taxpayer dollars and give some nonviolent offenders a second chance while keeping the most dangerous criminals in prison. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

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The resolution does not actually issue the subpoenas, but gives Nadler the power to do so if he chooses in the future.

The list of people the resolution would allow him to subpoena includes Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, former national security adviser Michael Flynn, former Trump adviser Corey Lewandowski, former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, former Attorney General Jeff Sessions and former Homeland Security secretary and White House chief of staff John Kelly.

It also includes former White House deputy chief of staff for legislative affairs Rick Dearborn, Assistant Attorney General Jody Hunt, former White House aide Rob Porter, lawyer Keith Davidson, Dylan Howard, who oversees the National Enquirer, as well as its publisher David Pecker.

Rep. Doug Collins, R-Ga., top Republican on the panel, lambasted Nadler on Thursday over both the resolution authorizing the subpoenas and the scheduled hearing featuring former special counsel Robert Mueller next week, arguing that members won't be able to ask questions because of the time limit "this committee got rolled."

Ahead of the vote on the resolution, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, said that "children are still being separated from their families" at the U.S.-Mexico border.

Democrats have been demanding information from the administration for months regarding its policies over the treatment of migrants at the southern border. In May, Nadler and other members of the Judiciary panel wrote a letter to acting DHS Secretary Kevin McAleenan and other officials calling for an immediate investigation into the deaths of five migrant children in U.S. custody over the last six months.

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