House panel to hold Secretary of State Antony Blinken in contempt of Congress
A House committee will vote as soon as next week to hold Secretary of State Antony Blinken in criminal contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over documents related to the Biden administration’s abrupt U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan nearly two years ago.
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul confirmed the vote timing to The Washington Times.
The Texas Republican disclosed his plans after Mr. Blinken refused to comply with a subpoena that set a May 11 deadline to turn over a dissent cable outlining concerns among U.S. diplomats from the embassy in Kabul ahead of the pullout.
Dissent cables are typically classified and Mr. Blinken told the committee in March he would never release it because doing so would damage the integrity of critical communications between the department and diplomats.
State Department officials briefed Mr. McCaul in April on the documents he is seeking but will not hand them over.
House Republicans, who took the majority in January and now have subpoena power, intensified their quest for information leading up to the chaotic August 2021 withdrawal that led to the deaths of 13 servicemen and women and left thousands of Americans behind in addition to millions of dollars worth of military equipment.
President Biden has largely blamed his predecessor, former President Donald Trump, for setting up the conditions that led to the botched pullout.
If the GOP-led panel votes to hold Mr. Blinken in contempt, the matter moves to the House floor, where a simple majority is needed to pass it. If Mr. Blinken is found in criminal contempt of Congress, it will be up to Mr. Biden’s Justice Department to pursue charges, which is doubtful. A court, however, will ultimately decide whether Mr. Blinken must turn over the documents or otherwise accommodate Mr. McCaul’s subpoena, but that could take years.
