Press Releases

Today, following House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jerrold Nadler’s (D-NY) participation in a bipartisan forum at Georgetown Law entitled, “Congressional Oversight of the DOJ and FBI in the Trump Era,” he released a new report detailing Committee Democrats’ efforts to conduct proper oversight of the Trump Administration.

Below are excerpts from Ranking Member Nadler’s remarks at the forum, as prepared for delivery: 

“Instead of real oversight, we now live in a time when the Administration appears to be actively coordinating with Members of the Majority to stymie Congressional and DOJ investigations. The results of these attacks and lack of oversight have taken their toll. Fifteen months into the Trump Administration, we stand on the verge of a constitutional crisis.

“Depending on the day of the week, the President is threatening to fire the Attorney General, the Deputy Attorney General, and the Special Counsel.  The president may also be signaling that pardons are in the offing for anyone who could testify against him. He criticizes individual judges, refers to the press as “the enemy of the people,” and calls for his political opponents to be prosecuted and jailed.

“Although Democrats don’t control the gavel, we have done everything in our power to force the Majority to act, or at the very least, to create accountability where they fail to act.  Significantly, these oversight efforts help lay the predicate for action if Democrats retake the House majority in the fall. Notwithstanding our best efforts in the Minority, it is clear far more needs to be done immediately.  For the good of our Democracy, we need to do everything in our power to protect the integrity and independence of the Department of Justice and the FBI, and we need to do so as soon as possible.”

As the report documents, since the 2016 presidential election, House Judiciary Committee Democrats have remained committed to pursuing active oversight of the executive branch.  In ordinary times, under the leadership of either party, the Committee would have focused its attention on election security, enforcement of federal ethics rules, obvious breaches of the Foreign Emoluments Clause of the Constitution, allegations of obstruction of justice, and preserving the independence of the Department of Justice, among other matters.

But these are not ordinary times.  Although any one of these subjects should command the attention of the House Judiciary Committee, President Trump appears to have failed the country on all of these fronts at the same time.  And although the Committee has an obligation to address these pressing issues without delay, the Republican majority has refused to conduct any meaningful oversight of the Trump Administration. 

Committee Democrats have hoped to force action by writing letters to the Administration and House leadership, holding and participating in forums, forcing votes on resolutions of inquiry, releasing reports, and introducing legislation.  Unfortunately, nearly all the letters sent by our Members have received no response, and all of our resolutions of inquiry have been rejected by the Majority.  The silence speaks to an Administration run amok and a Republican majority willing to turn a blind eye to gross misconduct.  Significantly, these oversight efforts help lay the predicate for action by the Committee if the Democrats retake the House majority in the fall.

Ranking Member Nadler has proposed that Congress take several immediate actions to restore accountability and protect DOJ and FBI from undue interference, including passing the Special Counsel Integrity and Independence Act, ensuring that subpoenas are approved by committee members and limiting misuse of assertions of executive privilege.

House Judiciary Committee Democrats’ oversight efforts include the following:

• Sent 64 letters to the Administration
• Sent 6 letters to the Inspector General of the Department of Justice
• Sent 39 letters to the House Judiciary Committee and House Majority Leadership
• On 4 occasions moved to convene special committee meetings and floor activity
• Sent 12 letters to outside entities
• Held and participated in 14 Democratic forums
• Released and assisted with 11 reports
• Requested 6 Government Accountability Office reports
• Introduced and supported 5 Resolutions of Inquiry
• Introduced 2 censure resolutions
• Introduced 35 oversight-related bills and resolutions
• Led one lawsuit against the President for his violation of the Foreign Emoluments Clause with over 200 co-plaintiffs
• Led 15 amicus briefs

The full report is available here.

Read Nadler’s remarks at the forum here.

Watch the forum here.