.@RepCohen brought @KFC to today’s @HouseJudiciary @judiciarygop hearing on Mueller Report.
As the House Judiciary Committee met on Thursday morning to discuss the Mueller report, one congressman had a surprise. Representative Steve Cohen, a Democrat from Tennessee, brought out a bucket of KFC and started handing out pieces of fried chicken to his colleagues. Cohen also brought along a big glass chicken which he set out in front of him. You can see the Tennessee congressman with his chicken, here:
Dem Rep. Steve Cohen has a glass chicken and a bucket of KFC at hearing where Dems contend that Barr was “too afraid” to take questions from staff attorneys to appear
C-Span caught a clip of Cohen handing out KFC to his colleagues, as the hearing room erupted in laughter. You can see that here. “Drumstick, ma’am?” Cohen said, offering a chicken piece to one of his colleagues. He didn’t get a lot of takers. You can hear at least one congress member mumbling that he should have brought donuts instead.
The chicken seemed to be Cohen’s way of hinting that Attorney General William Barr is “chicken” for not attending today’s hearing of the House Judiciary Committee. Barr was originally expected to testify at the hearing but changed his mind after a dispute about whether he would face questions from lawyers on the House committee staff. Barr’s Justice Department also said it would not hand over a full, unredacted copy of the Mueller report, in spite of a subpoena from the House committee. Committee chair Jerry Nadler, a Democrat from New York, has said that his committee will begin contempt proceedings against Barr if he doesn’t comply with the subpoena.
Barr appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday. But the Justice Department said that he would not testify to the House Committee if he had to face questions from lawyers. “Unfortunately, even after the Attorney General volunteered to testify, Chairman Nadler placed conditions on the House Judiciary Committee hearing that are unprecedented and unnecessary,” the Justice Department said in a statement. “Congress and the Executive branch are co-equal branches of government, and each have a constitutional obligation to respect and accommodate one another’s legitimate interests.”