Friday, May 03rd
Last update06:21:33 AM GMT
Congressional Glance
The articles – abuse of power and obstruction of Congress – are charges of wrongdoing that lay out specific assertions of how the president violated the U.S. Constitution and the oath of his office.
Each of the articles will be voted on separately by the Judiciary Committee later this week, possibly Thursday. Those the panel approves will go to the full House for a vote, probably with a simple majority in the Democratic-controlled body on each article.
An allegation that Bob Livingston, a congressman-turned-lobbyist, sought to oust the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine raises questions about whether he violated a federal law that requires lobbyists to disclose their work for foreign clients.
Livingston, a former high-ranking House member who heads an influential Washington lobbying firm, repeatedly called Foreign Service Officer Catherine Croft and pressed for the ouster of the ambassador, Marie Yovanovitch, Croft told impeachment investigators last week.
In Croft's written statement, she said Livingston told her that Yovanovitch – now a key figure in impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump – was an “Obama holdover” associated with George Soros, the billionaire investor, philanthropist, Democratic donor, and Trump critic.
An official working on the impeachment inquiry told CBS News that Reeker received a subpoena to appear.
"In light of an attempt by the State Department to direct Ambassador Philip Reeker not to appear for his scheduled deposition, and efforts by the State Department to also limit any testimony that does occur, the House Intelligence Committee issued a subpoena to compel his testimony. As is required of him, Ambassador Reeker is now complying with the subpoena and answering questions," the official said.
Semyon Kislin, an associate of President Trump’s personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, has reached a deal with the House Intelligence Committee to cooperate with its impeachment investigation and avoid being deposed behind closed doors, according to CNN.
The panel reportedly sent Kislin a letter earlier this month asking for information on Giuliani’s efforts to solicit potentially damaging information from Ukraine on former Vice President Joe Biden’s son Hunter’s work in the country.
Jeff Dannenberg, a lawyer for Kislin, reportedly told CNN that the Giuliani associate is “being cooperative” with the Intelligence Committee.
Dannenberg also said that his client has reached an agreement with the intelligence panel to avoid having to appear for a deposition
The House Judiciary Committee on Thursday demanded Hope Hicks return for a second round of questioning within the next month to clarify what it described as "inconsistent" testimony she gave about Donald Trump's hush-money payments to an adult film actress.
Democratic panel chairman Jerry Nadler in a five-page letter cited newly released court documents that raise questions about whether the former White House communications director and longtime Trump aide misled his panel about her role in the scheme during a closed-door interview last month.
The House on Tuesday approved a measure authorizing the Judiciary Committee to take Attorney General William Barr to federal court to gain access to former special counsel Robert Mueller's unredacted report and underlying evidence.
The legislation also empowers Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) to begin legal proceedings to force former White House counsel Don McGahn to cooperate with the panel’s probe into whether President Donald Trump obstructed justice.
It’s Democrats’ most aggressive step yet in their ongoing oversight battle with the Trump administration over withheld documents and witnesses — granting sweeping authority to committee chairs to sue the administration in federal court to enforce their subpoenas, including efforts to obtain Trump’s tax returns and haul Mueller’s witnesses to Capitol Hill.
McGahn's refusal to comply with a House Judiciary Committee subpoena came at the direction of the White House and after a legal opinion from the Justice Department on Monday said he could not be forced to appear before the panel.
The committee's chairman, Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., bristled at McGahn's absence. “This conduct is not remotely acceptable,” he said Tuesday, facing an empty witness chair. “Our subpoenas are not optional.”
Page 9 of 55
