• The January 6 select committee voted Wednesday to hold Trump DOJ official Jeffrey Clark in contempt of Congress 
  • The seven Democrat, two Republican panel approved a report recommending the criminal charge by an unanimous 9-0 vote 
  • It comes after Clark appeared before the committee in November but declined to answer questions
  • The vote is likely a way to stop Trump aides and allies from complying with subpoenas to appear before the committee but not cooperating in testifying

The panel probing the January 6 Capitol attack voted Wednesday to hold Trump Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark in contempt of Congress.

The seven Democratic and two Republican members of the House of Representatives Select Committee approved a report recommending the criminal charge by an unanimous 9-0 vote.

Clark appeared before the committee in early November but declined to answer questions, citing Trump’s legal efforts to block the committee’s investigation – specifically due to executive privilege.

The vote is likely a way to stop Donald Trump aides and allies from complying with subpoenas to appear before the committee but not cooperating in testifying.

Steve Bannon was held in contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with a subpoena from the committee last month. In mid-November, the Justice Department charged the former Trump strategist with criminal contempt.

The chairman of the panel, Mississippi Representative Bennie Thompson, said the committee received a last-minute notification from Clark’s lawyer that he wants to invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

Thompson said he believes Clark’s attempt to return is a ‘a last-ditch attempt to delay the Select Committee’s proceedings’. Nevertheless, the committee has agreed to try to interview him again.

‘We will proceed tonight with considering the contempt report, as this is just the first step of the contempt process,’ Thompson said. ‘We want the facts, and we need witnesses to cooperate with their legal obligation and provide us with information about what led to the January 6th attack.’

The vote came after Trump’s White House chief of staff at the time of the attack, Mark Meadows, agreed to cooperate with the panel on a limited basis after more than two months of negotiations.

Meadows has provided some documents and is expected to sit for a deposition as soon as next week, though his lawyer has indicated he will decline to answer specific questions about his conversations with the president.

Just like Bannon, recommendations of criminal contempt charges against Clark will now go to the full House for a vote.

It is unclear if the full House vote will be delayed considering the committee has agreed to meet with Clark again. If the House votes to hold Clark in contempt of Congress, the Justice Department will then decide whether to prosecute.