House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) has threatened to hold FBI Director Christopher Wray in contempt of Congress if the bureau does not comply with two subpoenas related to its alleged targeting of concerned parents and Catholics.
In his letter to Mr. Wray on July 17, Mr. Jordan highlighted the FBI’s “wholly inadequate” response to the subpoenas, which he believed hindered the committee’s oversight efforts.
“Of particular interest to the Committee is the FBI’s weaponization of its law-enforcement powers against Americans who exercise their First Amendment rights,” Mr. Jordan wrote (pdf).
The first subpoena, issued on Feb. 3, requested documents and information related to the “FBI’s targeting of concerned parents who speak out at school board meetings.”
The second subpoena, issued on April 10, was about the “FBI’s profiling of traditional Catholics as domestic extremists.”
“To date, the FBI’s compliance with these subpoenas has been wholly inadequate and has materially impeded the Committee’s oversight efforts,” Mr. Jordan wrote.
“After several accommodations, months of persistent outreach by the Committee, and attempts to negotiate and work with the FBI in good faith, we write to notify you that if the FBI does not improve its compliance substantially, the Committee will take action—such as the initiation of contempt of Congress proceedings—to obtain compliance with these subpoenas.”
The deadline for the FBI to provide the requested documents is set for July 25 at 12 p.m.
The committee has already received some documents from the FBI, but believes that there are additional materials still not provided.
“The FBI’s productions to date have not included material the Committee knows is, or has reason to believe may be, in the FBI’s possession and that is responsive to the subpoena,” Mr. Jordan wrote.
One specific record the committee wants is an email that might shed light on the connection between the National School Boards Association’s (NSBA’s) 2021 letter to President Joe Biden and the FBI’s focus on alleged threats made by vocal parents at school board meetings.
