Goodlatte, Gowdy reach agreement with the Department of Justice

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On April 23rd, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) released the following statement after reaching an agreement with Department of Justice (DOJ) Assistant Attorney General Stephen E. Boyd and United States Attorney John Lausch to review and obtain documents and information pursuant to the Committees’ joint investigation into decisions made in 2016 and 2017.

“The Committees have reached an agreement with the Department of Justice to access the documents we have been requesting for months. We look forward to reviewing the information to better understand the decisions made by the Department of Justice in 2016 and 2017. Congress has a constitutional responsibility to preserve the integrity of our justice system by ensuring transparency and accountability of actions taken.”

Background:

• In October 2017, the Committees opened a joint investigation into the decisions made by the Department of Justice in 2016 and 2017.
• In December 2017, the Committees sent a follow-up letter requesting documents and information regarding the FBI’s decision making in 2016 and 2017.
• On March 22, the House Judiciary Committee issued a subpoena to the Department of Justice for documents pursuant to the Committees’ joint investigation.
• On April 11, Chairman Goodlatte and Chairman Gowdy met with U.S. Attorney John Lausch to discuss the Committees’ access to documents related to our joint investigation.