Former federal prosecutor Joe diGenova said Saturday that the U.S. House of Representatives could vote to hold former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in contempt of Congress for defying subpoenas to provide testimony regarding Jeffrey Epstein, but he predicted that criminal charges from a Washington, D.C., grand jury would be difficult to secure.
\nDiGenova made the comments during an appearance on Newsmax TV\u2019s program \u201cThe Count.\u201d He said the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee appears poised to advance contempt proceedings after the Clintons declined congressional subpoenas related to an ongoing investigation.
\n\u201cWell, here we have it. The contemptible Clintons are now in contempt,\u201d diGenova said, predicting the committee will approve contempt votes \u201cwith or without the help of Democrats.\u201d<\/p>\n
Under House procedures, contempt findings by a committee can lead to a full House vote, followed by a referral to federal prosecutors. DiGenova said that even with a referral, obtaining an indictment from a D.C. grand jury\u2014which he described as \u201cliberal Democrat\u201d\u2014would be \u201cextremely difficult.\u201d
\n\u201cAnd this is a democratically controlled grand jury, along with the petit juries; getting an indictment from a D.C. Grand jury is going to be extremely difficult,\u201d he said.
\nDiGenova also commented on the role of the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, saying the office could influence any potential prosecution.
\n\u201cBut if anyone can do it, it\u2019s Jeanine Pirro,\u201d said diGenova, the Senate-confirmed U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia.<\/p>\n
The remarks come amid a broader effort by House Republicans to press for accountability after Bill and Hillary Clinton declined to appear for depositions in a congressional investigation. House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer has said the panel will pursue contempt proceedings after the Clintons\u2019 refusal to comply with subpoenas.
\nIf the committee approves contempt measures, the next steps would include a vote by the full House and a possible referral to the Department of Justice.
\n\u201cIt will go to the House floor,\u201d diGenova predicted. \u201cThey should be held in contempt unless some Republicans break loose.\u201d
\nHouse Oversight Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., announced on Wednesday that the panel would initiate contempt proceedings after Bill and Hillary Clinton both failed to appear for a scheduled deposition<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a result of Bill Clinton not showing up for his lawful subpoena, which again was voted unanimously by the committee in a bipartisan manner, we will move next week in the House Oversight Committee markup to hold former President Clinton in contempt of Congress,\u201d Comer told reporters.
\nCongress has increasingly relied on contempt proceedings in recent years, including in the case of former White House aide Steve Bannon.
\nIn July 2022, Bannon was found guilty of two counts of criminal contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena related to the House investigation into the January 6 riots. He was subsequently sentenced to four months in prison.
\nIn July, the Federal Law Enforcement Subcommittee approved by voice vote the issuance of subpoenas to 10 individuals, including the Clintons.
\nThe subpoenas seek testimony connected to the federal investigations into crimes committed by Epstein and his longtime associate, Ghislaine Maxwell, Newsmax reported on Friday.
\n\u201cIt has been more than four months since Bill and Hillary Clinton were subpoenaed to sit for depositions related to our investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell\u2019s horrific crimes,\u201d Comer said in a statement. \u201cThroughout that time, the former President and former Secretary of State have delayed, obstructed, and largely ignored the Committee staff\u2019s efforts to schedule their testimony.
\n\u201cIf the Clintons fail to appear for their depositions next week or schedule a date for early January, the Oversight Committee will begin contempt of Congress proceedings to hold them accountable,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Former federal prosecutor Joe diGenova said Saturday that the U.S. House of Representatives could vote to hold former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10421,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10420","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n