On Monday, a Republican legislator declared that she will utilize a rarely used House procedural tool to put forth a vote in the coming days. The vote will direct the House sergeant-at-arms to take the attorney general into custody.
In a social media post on Monday afternoon, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., announced her intention to initiate a vote to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in inherent contempt of Congress. She also encouraged her colleagues to vote in favor of the measure, sharing a copy of a letter addressed to them.
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According to sources, the Justice Department has chosen not to provide any comments regarding the issue.
In the letter, Luna, 35, explained that under inherent contempt, the sergeant at arms brings the individual before the bar of the House, the body tries them, and then they can be detained.
In her message, she emphasized that the only way to ensure compliance with the subpoena is to exercise the constitutional authority of inherent contempt. She announced that she plans to present a resolution in the coming days, which will hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in inherent contempt of Congress. She expressed her hope that all members will support the resolution when it is put to a vote.
Recently, House Speaker Mike Johnson requested a court order to obtain audiotapes that House Republicans were seeking from the attorney general. This came after the Justice Department refused to prosecute Garland. The audiotapes are now being sought through legal means.
Earlier this month, the House voted 216-207, largely along party lines, to hold Garland in contempt of Congress for his refusal to provide audio recordings of President Joe Biden’s interview with special counsel Robert Hur, despite a written transcript. This decision was made after the House Judiciary and Oversight Committees had previously voted in May to push the resolution forward.
During that time, the resolution was labeled as a “partisan weapon” by the attorney general.
On Monday, Luna, a supporter of former President Donald Trump, asserted that the Department of Justice is not exempt from the law.
Luna’s plan may face opposition from both Democrats and Republicans, making it unlikely to succeed despite the effort.
In May, Luna, who was elected to the House in 2022, filed the inherent contempt resolution. However, using inherent contempt would pose a challenge as it has not been used since 1935. Considered a “cumbersome, inefficient” tool, it raises several open-ended questions.
However, she has taken similar steps before.
During the past summer, she found herself at the forefront of a GOP-led vote to censure Representative Adam Schiff, who is now the 2024 Democratic nominee for California’s Senate seat. The censure was a result of Schiff’s involvement in the first impeachment of former President Donald Trump.
In her letter, Luna, a member of the House Freedom Caucus, emphasized the gravity of the situation at hand. She stressed that the legislature’s ability to pass laws and carry out its constitutional responsibilities is in jeopardy. Luna urged immediate action to safeguard the autonomy and credibility of the legislative branch.
