The times have changed since 1983. Back then, the Congress had a clear sense of their prerogatives. Back then, they were unanimous in asserting that the Reagan administration was stepping over their bounds.
Congress has used contempt citations for two main reasons: to punish someone for refusing to testify or refusing to provide documents or answers, and for bribing or libeling a member of Congress.
The last time a full chamber of Congress voted on a contempt citation was 1983. The House voted 413-0 to cite former Environmental Protection Agency official Rita Lavelle for contempt of Congress for refusing to appear before a House committee. Lavelle was later acquitted in court of the contempt charge, but she was convicted of perjury in a separate trial.
What happened today?
The House Judiciary Committee voted contempt of Congress citations Wednesday against White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten and President Bush’s former legal counselor, Harriet Miers.
The 22-17 vote — which would sanction [the] pair for failure to comply with subpoenas on the firings of several federal prosecutors — advanced the citation to the full House.
This demonstrates an appalling erosion of principle among GOP lawmakers. Ronald Reagan was not only a Republican president, unlike Bush he was a popular president. Nevertheless, in 1983, not a single Republican member of congress was willing to let him stonewall a congressional committee. Today, not a single Republican on the Judiciary Committee was willing to say the same.
What happened in the interim?
I don’t know. What do you think?
