Acting U.S. Attorney General Matthew Whitaker leaves with CIA Director Gina Haspel after U.S. President Donald Trump delivered his second State of the Union address to a joint session of the U.S. Congress in the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S. February 5, 2019. REUTERS/Leah Millis

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The head of the U.S. House Judiciary Committee said on Thursday the panel was ready to work with acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker to address concerns he might have about answering certain questions at a planned Friday hearing, but he stopped short of withdrawing the threat of an eventual subpoena.

“If you appear before the committee tomorrow morning and if you are prepared to respond to questions from our members, then I assure you that there will be no need for the committee to issue a subpoena on or before February 8,” Democratic Representative Jerrold Nadler wrote in a letter to Whitaker.

“To the extent that you believe you are unable to fully respond to any specific question, we are prepared to handle your concerns on a case-by-case basis, both during and after tomorrow’s hearing,” Nadler said.