Chairman Jerry Nadler has warned that former White House Counsel Don McGahn could face stiff consequences for ignoring his subpoena to appear before the House Judiciary Committee. Congress Nadler vows accountability after McGahn defies subpoena to testify

House Democrats convened Tuesday to hear a crucial witness in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation — and for the second time in a month, they came face to face with an empty chair.

Former White House Counsel Don McGahn refused to appear, deferring to President Donald Trump’s instruction that he not testify to the Democrat-led House Judiciary Committee. Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) has warned that McGahn could face stiff consequences for ignoring his subpoena to appear and sent a warning shot at the president Tuesday.


“Let me be clear: this committee will hear Mr. McGahn’s testimony, even if we have to go to court to secure it,” Nadler said at the outset of the hearing.

“We will hold this president accountable, one way or the other,” Nadler said.

But the empty-chair hearing, just weeks after Attorney General William Barr similarly refused to appear over a disagreement with the hearing format, has exasperated rank-and-file Democrats hungry to question Mueller and his witnesses. They’ve been blocked at every turn, so far, and are increasingly arguing that an impeachment inquiry may be the only way to force witnesses to comply.

As of late Monday, though, Speaker Nancy Pelosi had held firm against some of her closest allies and argued that impeachment would be a distraction from Democrats’ agenda and that the Democratic caucus, as a whole, is simply not on board with the plan.

In the meantime, Democrats vented their rage at McGahn for not showing up and quickly adjourned the hearing.