“Well, we haven’t gotten there yet. We haven’t claimed that yet. But we are, you know, adamant that people obey the law and we want people’s testimony,” the House of Representatives said. Jamie Raskin, a Maryland Democrat, said who served in the table.
The committee is scheduled to meet Tuesday morning, where the topic is expected to be discussed, a source close to CNN told CNN. While members may push to expedite the process, it’s likely a decision won’t happen until after the Thanksgiving break.
On Friday, Select Committee Chair Bennie Thompson, a Mississippi Democrat, and Vice President Liz Cheney, a Wyoming Republican, issued a statement warning Meadows that his lack of compliance would force them to act – possibly including a disdainful introduction.
“Mr Meadows’ actions today – choosing to defy the law – will force the Selection Committee to consider pursuing contempt or other proceedings to enforce the subpoena,” the statement read.
Unlike Bannon, Meadows was an employee of the executive branch on January 6, making his claims of executive privilege all the more substantial. The committee said it viewed each witness and their cooperation independently.
“Each person is supposed to be their own end,” Raskin said. “So Steve Bannon should be treated the way Steve Bannon behaves.”
But while the committee is looking at each case separately, it hopes other subpoena targets take note of Bannon’s legal predicament.
“Clearly, we have set a precedent for noncompliance,” said Representative Pete Aguilar of California, a Democrat.
The other problem is the calendar.
Members are expected to stay in the city only until Friday before they return to their counties before Thanksgiving. That doesn’t appear to be enough time for the commission to take all the necessary steps to move Meadows’ criminal referral out of the House.
If the jury decides to pursue a criminal contempt referral for Meadows, they need to first write a report detailing all of their communications with him and giving reasons why they believe he should be treated as a criminal, in that case the case will be wide open. Next, the committee would have to hold a business meeting to pass the report, and then schedule a cascading vote for the entire House of Representatives on the report.
On top of that, the committee’s work comes as House Democratic leaders are trying to rally their caucuses together to pass a key piece of the President’s domestic agenda. President Joe Biden, the Building Better Returns Act, which has faced numerous delays in previous weeks.
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