Last week, California Representative Robert Garcia celebrated the Democratic capture of Congress in this year’s midterm elections with a two-word statement: “Lawyer up.” His remark was aimed at…
Last week, California Representative Robert Garcia celebrated the Democratic capture of Congress in this year’s midterm elections with a two-word statement: “Lawyer up.” His remark was aimed at Trump administration officials, many of whom can expect closer scrutiny from the House Oversight Committee that Garcia is expected to chair in January. Those officials are not taking this well.
White House counsel Will Scharf sent a letter to Garcia on Wednesday in which he threatened to prosecute him and members of Congress for issuing what he described as “unlawful” subpoenas. “Beyond being inconsistent with the clear, well-recognized constitutional limitations on your investigative functions, threats to executive branch officials designed to deter them from public service, or process designed merely to abuse or instill fear in the recipient may cross the line into blatant criminality,” he claimed.
“And issuing unlawful subpoenas with the intention of depriving citizens of their constitutional rights and privileges may warrant further investigation. “The Trump administration expects members of Congress to discharge their investigative functions within settled constitutional limits,” Scharf continued. “The administration will not be extorted and will not be cowed by unlawful process motivated by animus, pettiness, hatred, or any other unlawful motive to intimidate, penalize, or interfere with the lawful functioning of government.” Scharf’s letter—and the sentiment behind it—is misguided.
Two years of unified Republican governance appears to have left him and White House officials with a false impression of how the U.S. government actually works. Oversight is Congress’s gentlest tool to rein in a rogue presidency. If the White House doesn’t cooperate or comply, a simple majority of lawmakers can make things very painful for them very quickly. To start, Scharf’s threat is an empty one. Members of Congress such as Garcia have legislative immunity.
It applies in two circumstances: They can’t be arrested while traveling to and from the Capitol, and they can’t face civil or criminal liability “for any speech or debate in either house.” Courts have broadly interpreted the latter provision to cover many of Congress’s official functions, including hearings and investigations. This is real, black-letter, Article 1 stuff—not that immunity nonsense that the Supreme Court conjured up for Trump two years ago. Scharf’s sentiment is still worth rejecting.
This is a source-linked briefing. Read the original report from The New Republic .