The House took its strongest step yet in the standoff with President Trump over congressional oversight, voting Tuesday to seek court enforcement of subpoenas for Attorney General William P. Barr and former White House counsel Donald McGahn. Still, the House vote reflects the frustration among Democrats with Trump’s unwillingness to cooperate with congressional investigators, who argue they have a constitutional right to examine the executive branch. House Republicans lambasted the House vote as a distraction from bigger issues facing the country, including the southern border crisis. “Who does this president think he is?” asked Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), chairwoman of the House Financial Services Committee. The chairman of nearly any House committee, in fact, now has the ability to seek authorization from the group to “initiate or intervene in any judicial proceeding before a federal court” to enforce any duly issued subpoena.

Source: Washington Post June 11, 2019 18:26 UTC