John Dean: The Power of the Purse, Executive Privilege, Impeachment, Subpoena Power and so on..

Here is an excerpt:


The Arsenal of Tools Congressional Democrats Can Use To Force the Bush Administration To Cooperate with Their Efforts To Undertake Oversight:Part Three in a Three-Part Series

In this column, I will set forth each of those tools - as described in The Congressional Reference Service's (CRS) complete manual on oversight, which was updated recently, and in an excellent essay on these methods by Lou Fisher (one of the authors of the CRS manual), which is entitled "Congressional Access To Information: Using Legislative Will And Leverage."

The Appropriations Power: The "Power of the Purse"

Presidents are often willing "to surrender documents they consider sensitive or confidential to obtain funds from Congress to implement programs important to the executive branch," Fisher explains. Congress has used this leverage ever since the presidency of George Washington, when the House wanted documents relating to a treaty, which is, of course, a matter for the Senate, not the House. Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson counseled Washington to provide information to both the House and the Senate, given that a House appropriations bill was needed to fund the treaty. Later, as President, Jefferson had no qualms about providing treaty information to the House when he needed its members to fund the Louisiana Purchase.

The Impeachment Power: Congress' Strongest Weapon

Needless to say, this is heavy ammunition - though ammunition perhaps unlikely to be used by current Democrats, in light of the Clinton impeachment debacle.
Fisher says, "Congress has especially strong leverage when it decides to initiate the impeachment process."
President Washington, Fisher notes, was the first to concede this fact, but other presidents, from James Polk to Andrew Jackson have acknowledged the broad reach of an impeachment inquiry.

There can be no question that the threat of impeachment has convinced many presidents to provide Congress with information. What happens when a president refuses to cooperate, particularly when an actual impeachment inquiry is underway? The historical example, of course, is Richard Nixon. He stiffed the impeachment investigation, refusing to provide the inquiry with information requested in four subpoenas. The House prepared a bill of impeachment for Nixon's failure to produce the requested information, and Nixon resigned before he could be impeached. Not only was Nixon's gambit of not responding to the subpoenas ineffective, it actually inspired Congress to play hardball and enact a law that simply took Nixon's tapes and papers.

Suppose the 110th Congress does find itself being stonewalled by Bush and Cheney's claims of executive privilege. Does it then have no recourse?
Absolutely not: There is still a powerful option. Congress can take the issue to the public, and make a public case that Bush and Cheney are obstructing the legitimate operations of Congress by withholding vital information - thus ratcheting up the political pressure on the Administration. If Congress' evidence is strong enough, the Administration, though it may keep on withholding information, will incur a high cost for its unreasonable secrecy - and the Republicans may well pay that cost at the ballot box in 2008. More on Dean's article.