Senate Judiciary Committee Votes to Hold Bush Aides in Contempt
The Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday morning approved a motion to hold senior Bush aides in contempt of Congress for refusing to cooperate in the probe into the firing of U.S. attorneys.
The committee passed the measure, 12-7, on a largely party-line vote with two Republicans — ranking member Arlen Specter (Pa.) and Sen. Chuck Grassley (Iowa) — voting with Democrats.
Now, the full Senate will contemplate whether to issue contempt citations for documents and testimony from ex-White House political guru Karl Rove and White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten.
But the politically charged measure likely will be challenged by Republicans on the Senate floor. House Democrats had wanted to consider a parallel contempt citation before recessing for the year, but the tight calendar may prevent that. The House Judiciary Committee passed a contempt motion at the end of July.
Correction: Dec. 13, 2007
An earlier version of the story incorrectly stated that the committee approved contempt citations for former political director Sara Taylor and her deputy, Scott Jennings.
