Press Releases
Brendan Daly/Nadeam Elshami
202-226-7616
07/25/2007
Pelosi Statement on Contempt of Congress Vote by House Judiciary Committee
Washington, D.C. – Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued the following
statement today on a vote by the House Judiciary Committee calling for the full
House to seek contempt of Congress citations for White House Chief of Staff
Joshua Bolten and former White House Counsel Harriet Miers following their
refusal to comply with subpoenas issued in the U.S. Attorney investigation:
“The contempt proceedings in the House Judiciary Committee
today are part of a broader effort by House Democrats to restore our nation’s
fundamental system of checks and balances.
"The Constitution gives the Congress a crucial role in
overseeing the Executive Branch in order to protect the American people against
overreaching, incompetence, and corruption.
I am hopeful that today’s vote will help the Administration see the
light and release the information to which the Judiciary Committee is entitled.
"For the last six years, under Republican leadership,
Congress failed to conduct its proper oversight role, resulting in fiascos such
as the mismanagement of our
“Congress will act to preserve and protect our criminal justice system and to ensure appropriate Congressional oversight in all areas essential to the well-being of the American people.”