President Trump Will Not Participate In ‘Highly Partisan’ House Judiciary Hearing, White House Says
As the House Democrat-led impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump‘s dealings with Ukraine enters the next phase of the process, which involves an investigation by the House Judiciary Committee, the White House on Sunday made it clear that they have zero plan to comply.
According to The Hill, White House lawyers made the announcement in a scathing, five-page letter addressed to Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, in which they blasted the Democratic contingent of the committee for what they said was a lack of transparency and an unfair process for the president, labeling it “highly partisan.”
“We cannot fairly be expected to participate in a hearing while the witnesses are yet to be named and while it remains unclear whether the Judiciary Committee will afford the President a fair process through additional hearings,” the statement read, which was written by White House attorney Pat Cipollone.
Cipollone went on to disparage Wednesday’s hearing format, which is reportedly set to involve testimony from a panel of legal scholars officially called “The Impeachment Inquiry into President Donald J. Trump: Constitutional Grounds for Presidential Impeachment,” to assist House Democrats in deciding Trump’s fate in the impeachment process.
“Accordingly, under the current circumstances, we do not intend to participate in your Wednesday hearing,” he stated in the letter.
But the White House lawyer wasn’t finished, as he doubled down on accusing Nadler of holding the impeachment hearing to be held at the same time the president will be attending a NATO conference in London. Cipollone also alleged that Nadler was faking the appearance of giving the president a chance to properly defend himself, citing a letter that the House Judiciary chairman previously sent to Trump asking him to respond by December 6 on whether or not he intends to defend himself.
“You have given no information regarding your plans, set arbitrary deadlines, and then demanded a response, all to create the false appearance of providing the President some rudimentary process,” Cipollone wrote.
The White House lawyer’s messaging echoes previous charges by both Trump and his administration, in that they believe House Democrats are purposely running an unconventional impeachment process in retaliation for Trump’s victory in the 2016 presidential election.
Cipollone did mention the possibility of the president participating in the House Judiciary hearings if he was provided a “meaningful” way to do so.
As previously reported by The Inquisitr, news of the White House’s letter to the committee comes in the wake of Fox News legal analyst Andrew Napolitano claiming that the president’s impeachable behavior is “overwhelming.”
