Political Quotes

“Mr. Chief Justice, I send a question to the desk for the House managers. The CHIEF JUSTICE. Thank you. Senator Murray asks the House managers: Yesterday, when asked about why the House did not amend or reissue subpoenas after it passed its resolution authorizing its impeachment inquiry, the House Managers touched upon the House having the sole Power of Impeachment as specified by Article I of the Constitution. Could you further elaborate as to why that authority controls despite any arguments brought forth by members of the defense team contesting the validity of those subpoenas? Ms. Manager LOFGREN. Mr. Chief Justice and Senators, that is a good question. The answer is that these were validly issued subpoenas under the House rules. The White House argument to the contrary is wrong, and it would have profound negative implications for how Congress and our democracy function. On January 9, 2019, the House adopted its rules, like we do every Congress, and these rules gave the committee the power to issue subpoenas. They are not ambiguous rules. Here is the relevant portion of rule XI on slide 55: The House's standing rules give each committee subpoena power ``for the purpose of carrying out any of its functions and duties'' as it considers necessary. This investigation began on September 9, before the Speaker's announcement on September 24 that it would become part of the impeachment inquiry umbrella.…”