House votes to hold Trump ally Steve Bannon in contempt

Mace, who represents a political swing district, told reporters after the vote that she wants to maintain the power of subpoenas for future Republican majorities.

“I want the power to subpoena, when we start investigating some of the crises that are facing the Biden administration right now,” she said, mentioning immigration and the withdrawal from from Afghanistan.

Biden himself invoked the insurrection and linked it to the nation’s turbulent history as he marked the 10th anniversary of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial on the National Mall.

“We’re confronting the stains of what remains a deep stain in the soul of the nation: hate and white supremacy,” Biden said, describing what he said is a line in American history from slavery to the present day.

“In a violent, deadly insurrection on the Capitol nine months ago — it was about white supremacy in my view,” he said.

Biden, who had previously said the Justice Department should prosecute those who ignore congressional subpoenas, apologized Thursday for appearing to interfere with the agency's decisions in comments last week.

“I should have chosen my words more wisely," Biden said during a CNN town hall. "I did not, have not and will not pick up the phone and call the attorney general and tell him what he should or should not do.”

Even if the Justice Department does decide to prosecute, the case could take years to play out — potentially pushing past the 2022 election when Republicans could win control of the House and end the investigation.

There's still considerable uncertainty about whether the department will pursue the charges, despite Democratic demands for action. It's a decision that will determine not only the effectiveness of the House investigation but also the strength of Congress’ power to call witnesses and demand information.

While the department has historically been reluctant to use its prosecution power against witnesses found in contempt of Congress, the circumstances are exceptional as lawmakers investigate the worst attack on the U.S. Capitol in two centuries.

Democrats are pressuring Justice to take the case, arguing that nothing less than democracy is on the line.

“The stakes are enormous,” Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin said. "What we’re talking about is this massive, violent assault on American democracy.”

If the Justice Department doesn't prosecute, the House has other options, including a civil lawsuit. That could also take years but would force Bannon and any other witnesses to defend themselves in court.

The lingering acrimony over the insurrection, and the Bannon subpoena, flared Wednesday at a House Rules Committee hearing held to set the parameters of Thursday’s debate. Under intense questioning from Raskin, Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz, a Republican who defended Trump and opposed the Bannon contempt effort, said he accepted that Biden is the president but would not say that Biden won the election.

Raskin said, “I know that might work on Steve Bannon’s podcast, but that’s not going to work in the Rules Committee of the United States House of Representatives, Mr. Gaetz. I’m sorry."