Ex-Trump official defies subpoena; Democrats weigh contempt vote

A House committee chairman is threatening to hold a former White House official in contempt after Trump administration lawyers persuaded him not to testify Tuesday about the granting of security clearances.

Former White House personnel security director Carl Kline received a subpoena for a closed hearing after a longtime employee in the White House security clearance office, Tricia Newbold, told lawmakers that she and other colleagues had denied 25 applications for clearances only to see their denials overturned by supervisors.

The House Oversight and Reform Committee chairman, Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), said in a statement, “I intend to consult with House counsel and committee members about scheduling a vote on contempt.”

“I hope that Mr. Kline, in close consultation with his personal attorney, will carefully review his legal obligations, reconsider his refusal to appear, and begin cooperating with the committee’s investigation,” Cummings said.

Cummings’ committee has been scrutinizing how a number of senior aides, including Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and national security advisor John Bolton, obtained their security clearances.

The standoff represents yet another legal confrontation between the administration and House Democrats who have launched multiple investigations tied to President Trump and those around him. Democrats say those efforts will only intensify following last week’s release of a redacted version of special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s report.

Kline now works at the Defense Department.