The House Judiciary Committee just voted to hold Barr in contempt. Here's what happens next.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
The House Judiciary Committee has just voted in favor of holding Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress. So how big of a deal is that, and what happens next?
After Wednesday's vote, which came as President Trump asserted executive privilege over Special Counsel Robert Mueller's unredacted report, the entire House of Representatives now has to take a vote on the contempt resolution.
Should the House pass it, ABC News explains, the contempt citation would be referred to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, at which point it would likely not go any further into prosecution. For this reason, CNN notes, the contempt citation won't actually change much, though it's a dramatic escalation of the fight between Congress and the Trump administration.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
None of this is unprecedented, exactly. During former President Barack Obama's administration, then Attorney General Eric Holder was also held in contempt of Congress after withholding documents related to Operation Fast and Furious. There was plenty of Republican outrage as the contempt resolution was passed, but in the end, Holder was not prosecuted, and he remained in office.
However, Vox notes that what would be more significant is if Congress passes a resolution to proceed with a lawsuit against Barr to obtain the unredacted Mueller report, during which Barr could be held in contempt of court. That could be next, meaning that although Wednesday's vote on its own is not exactly Earth-shattering, the fight is likely far from over.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.
-
Political cartoons for February 7Cartoons Saturday’s political cartoons include an earthquake warning, Washington Post Mortem, and more
-
5 cinematic cartoons about Bezos betting big on 'Melania'Cartoons Artists take on a girlboss, a fetching newspaper, and more
-
The fall of the generals: China’s military purgeIn the Spotlight Xi Jinping’s extraordinary removal of senior general proves that no-one is safe from anti-corruption drive that has investigated millions
-
Trump sues IRS for $10B over tax record leaksSpeed Read The president is claiming ‘reputational and financial harm’ from leaks of his tax information between 2018 and 2020
-
Trump, Senate Democrats reach DHS funding dealSpeed Read The deal will fund most of the government through September and the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks
-
Fed holds rates steady, bucking Trump pressureSpeed Read The Federal Reserve voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged
-
Judge slams ICE violations amid growing backlashSpeed Read ‘ICE is not a law unto itself,’ said a federal judge after the agency violated at least 96 court orders
-
Rep. Ilhan Omar attacked with unknown liquidSpeed Read This ‘small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work’
-
Democrats pledge Noem impeachment if not firedSpeed Read Trump is publicly defending the Homeland Security secretary
-
The billionaires’ wealth tax: a catastrophe for California?Talking Point Peter Thiel and Larry Page preparing to change state residency
-
Hegseth moves to demote Sen. Kelly over videospeed read Retired Navy fighter pilot Mark Kelly appeared in a video reminding military service members that they can ‘refuse illegal orders’
