Whitaker to meet with House Committee privately on Wednesday

Former acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker will meet with the House Judiciary Committee privately on Wednesday after Democrats demanded he provide more answers about his interactions with President Trump and other issues following his explosive appearance on Capitol Hill last month. 

A Democratic aide confirmed to The Hill that Whitaker would return to meet with the committee behind closed doors on Wednesday, but noted that his return appearance would be a meeting and not a deposition or a transcribed interview.

{mosads}Whitaker, who recently left the department shortly after the confirmation of Attorney General William Barr, has been a controversial figure since Trump tapped him to lead the Justice Department in an acting capacity after Jeff Sessions was forced out last November.

Whitaker had voiced criticisms of special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation before he joined the Trump administration, and many Democrats and other Trump critics feared that he would look to impede the probe when he took the reins at the Justice Department.

Judiciary Committee Democrats grilled Whitaker in a contentious public hearing in February, during which he insisted he did not interfere with Mueller’s investigation and that Trump did not ask him for — nor did he make — commitments or promises with respect to Mueller’s investigation or other probes during his time leading the department. 

However, Whitaker angered Democrats by refusing to answer numerous questions directly. Days later, Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) wrote to Whitaker describing his testimony as “unsatisfactory” and contradictory and asking him to “clarify” his statements.

“Members on both sides of the aisle found many of your answers to be unsatisfactory, incomplete, or contradicted by other evidence,” Nadler wrote in the Feb. 13 letter. “You repeatedly refused to offer clear responses regarding your communications with the White House, and you were inconsistent in your application of the Department’s policy related to the discussion of ongoing investigations.” 

A subsequent New York Times report has caused some to question Whitaker’s public testimony.

According to the Times, Trump once asked Whitaker whether the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, Geoffrey Berman, could be put in charge of an investigation related to campaign finance violations stemming from an effort to pay off women who claimed they had affairs with Trump before the 2016 election. Trump has denied doing so, and the Justice Department said Whitaker stood by his testimony.

Whitaker left the Justice Department on March 2. It remains unclear whether he plans to seek another role within the Trump administration.