Washington, Apr 20 (IANS): The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee has issued a subpoena demanding that the Justice Department hand over an unredacted version of Special Counsel Robert Muellers report and the evidence underlying it by May 1, and pledged "major hearings" on its findings.
The chairman, Representative Jerrold Nadler of New York, on Friday asked for all evidence obtained by Mueller's investigators, including summaries of witness interviews and classified intelligence - and indicated he intended to air it to the public, reports the New York Times reported.
"Even the redacted version of the report outlines serious instances of wrongdoing by President Trump and some of his closest associates," Nadler said in a statement.
"It now falls to Congress to determine the full scope of that alleged misconduct and to decide what steps we must take going forward."
The subpoena was sent as House Democrats, who have the power to initiate impeachment proceedings if they so choose, debate how to proceed with the new evidence handed over on Thursday by Mueller.
Democratic-led committees have already initiated their own investigations of Russian election influence, as well as obstruction of justice and abuse of power, which can incorporate the findings in the shorter term.
But there were also new calls in the wake of the report from the party's left flank - including Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat running for President - to go further and open a formal impeachment inquiry.
House Speaker has scheduled a conference call for all House Democrats on April 22 to discuss the implications of what she called "a grave matter".
A Justice Department spokeswoman, Kerri Kupec, called the subpoena "premature and unnecessary" given Attorney General William Barr's voluntary release of the report and offer to share more with lawmakers.
"The Department will continue to work with Congress to accommodate its legitimate requests consistent with the law and long-recognized executive branch interests," she said on Friday night.