T. Greg Doucette, a #NeverTrump conservative lawyer, is throwing ice-cold water on the idea that the January 6 Committee was ever going to enforce the subpoenas.
“It was always going to end this way,” he tweeted:
Spoiler: the 1/6 Commission was never going to enforce the subpoenas
The House refuses to use inherent contempt power, and a subpoena fight in the courts will last years – while the committee disappears on 3 January 2023
It was always going to end this way https://t.co/Mj1oWiDNwn
— T. Greg Doucette (@greg_doucette) October 8, 2021
The problem, and Dems won’t like his explanation, is that Congress prefers it this way because it frees them up “to do nothing of substance, criticize whatever they want whenever they want, and continue to be feted as important”:
Congress has zero interest in being the Article I branch of Government
They all, collectively and individually, prefer an Imperial Executive setup. That frees them to do nothing of substance, criticize whatever they want whenever they want, and continue to be feted as important
— T. Greg Doucette (@greg_doucette) October 8, 2021
And he’s predicting the people on the committee will see it differently, but “it’s all 💩” until an expedited appeal is actually filed:
Of course the people on the commission are going to insist they're doing important work and their subpoenas should be honored and etc etc
Wake me when there's expedited briefing on an enforcement action
Until ones filed, expedited, appealed, expedited, appealed, it's all 💩 https://t.co/uNLMuXWLw8
— T. Greg Doucette (@greg_doucette) October 8, 2021
Recommended
Doucette wants people to ignore Rick Wilson and focus on the real issue facing Dems, which is the calendar.
“Understanding how the federal court system works, and that nothing in it gets done in the 1 years and 3 months that the 1/6 Commission will continue to exist”:
Understanding how the federal court system works, and that nothing in it gets done in the 1 years and 3 months that the 1/6 Commission will continue to exist
Ignore Wilson. The reality doesn't change https://t.co/k6QJMrxbhT
— T. Greg Doucette (@greg_doucette) October 8, 2021
Like Cinderella at the ball, poof. . .it’s gone:
Correct. Each 2-year session of Congress is its own separate and distinct legal entity
The 1/6 Commission will dissolve on 3 January 2023, if it's not dissolved sooner https://t.co/iMkj10mPpb
— T. Greg Doucette (@greg_doucette) October 8, 2021
He also says the DOJ won’t even prosecute even if a referral is made:
Presumably once the referral is made it's done, but the DOJ isn't going to prosecute. Referrals are routinely ignored https://t.co/XZHepZJKJw
— T. Greg Doucette (@greg_doucette) October 8, 2021
There’s just not enough time:
What part of "the memo" addresses the fact that the courts don't move fast enough to enforce the subpoenas? https://t.co/ChuVGWsLXb
— T. Greg Doucette (@greg_doucette) October 8, 2021
But there are some things Dems can get done:
There's still a wide array of evidence the committee can compile / sort / analyze: stuff that's already public, stuff from cooperators, stuff at the National Archives that Biden let's them have, etc
But they were never going to get subpoenaed docs or testimony w/o cooperation https://t.co/hNkPBPEd5Y
— T. Greg Doucette (@greg_doucette) October 8, 2021
Doucette gave an example of just how long this thing could take in the courts:
The Trump/Mazars subpoenas were issued in April 2019, subject to extraordinarily fast lower court proceedings, and still not decided by SCOTUS until July 2020
16 months, minimum, when there's unusual alacrity
The commission wants to be done in 9 mos; Congress dissolves in 14
— T. Greg Doucette (@greg_doucette) October 8, 2021
Sorry, Dems, it’s the math:
9 is less than 14 is less than 16
The math is the math
Hence my "it was always going to end this way"
— T. Greg Doucette (@greg_doucette) October 8, 2021
Yep:
The part I find most fascinating about Twitter Democrats over the past 5 years has been how quickly they'll attack me for pointing out certain basic truisms, their wishcasting fails to materialize months or years down the line, and yet they still continue
Never change y'all
— T. Greg Doucette (@greg_doucette) October 8, 2021
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