A report issued last week by the non-partisan Congressional Research Service casts doubt on the Bush administration's claim that assertions of executive privilege protect current and former White House officials from criminal contempt citations by Congress.
"Factual, legal, and constitutional aspects of these OLC opinions are open to question and potentially limitations," write Morton Rosenberg, a Specialist in American Public Law and Todd B. Tatelman, a Legislative Attorney, both in the CRS's American Law Division.
The CRS is a non-partisan agency of the Library of Congress that responds to inquiries on policy questions offered by Members of Congress and their staffs. The agency's findings are not officially made available for public consumption.
Three current or former White House staff members are possibly facing criminal contempt charges from the House or Senate. Current White House Chief of Staff Joshua Bolten ignored a Congressional subpoena to deliver documents to the House Judiciary Committee on the firing of a group of US Attorneys. Additionally, both Harriet Miers, former White House Counsel, and Karl Rove, a top White House adviser, ignored subpoenas to testify before the House and Senate Judiciary Committees respectively. All three acted on the basis of the President's assertion of executive privilege.
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