Trump Justice Department Tries to Threaten Democrats Into Canceling Bill Barr Contempt Vote

The Trump Justice Department has sent a letter threatening to block access to the full Mueller report if the House of Representatives goes ahead with a planned vote to hold Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress Wednesday.

On Tuesday night, Assistant Attorney General Stephen Boyd sent the letter to House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) complaining about the contempt vote, and threatening to advise the White House to claim executive privilege over the Mueller report and the underlying evidence if the vote goes forward:

NEW: Barr threatens to ask the WH to invoke executive privilege over the Democrats’ demands for the Mueller report if the committee votes to hold him in contempt tomorrow. Vote is still on. Letter here: pic.twitter.com/dPn7DVsceP

— Manu Raju (@mkraju) May 8, 2019

“In the face of the Committee’s threatened contempt vote, the Attorney General will be compelled to request that the President invoke executive privilege with respect to the materials subject to the subpoena,” the letter said.

“I hereby request that the Committee hold the subpoena in abeyance and delay any vote on whether to recommend a citation of contempt for non-compliance with the subpoena, pending the President’s termination of this question,” Boyd also wrote.

Barr faces the contempt vote because he failed to show up for a House Judiciary Committee hearing the day after he withstood hours of grilling by the Senate Judiciary Committee. As CNN’s Manu Raju reports, Democrats are currently still planning to go ahead with the vote.