Rep. McCaul considers issuing a subpoena to Psaki as part of the Afghanistan investigation

Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, is warning that former White House press secretary Jen Psaki may be subpoenaed if she does not agree to an interview with the House Foreign Affairs Committee regarding the U.S.’s turbulent withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.

“As a private citizen who is ready to publish a memoir about her time as White House Press Secretary, I urge Ms. Psaki to avoid using flimsy legal arguments to avoid appearing before Congress,” McCaul wrote in a letter to Psaki’s lawyer, Emily Loeb, a partner at Jenner & Block, on Tuesday.

“The Committee will not stand for Ms. Psaki’s ongoing obstruction of this important investigation,” McCaul stated, highlighting the committee’s authority to subpoena individuals for testimony.

He further stated, “It is concerning that Ms. Psaki is seeking to profit from the tragedy in Afghanistan, yet she refuses to make herself available to Congress.”

In a memoir released in mid-May, Psaki claimed that President Joe Biden did not check his watch during the ceremony for soldiers killed during the withdrawal, contradicting news photos and accounts from Gold Star families.

In her book “Say More,” Psaki wrote that “the president looked at his watch only after the ceremony had ended. Moments later, he and the First Lady headed toward their car.”

Psaki also accused Biden’s critics of spreading “misinformation” and using the image to portray him as “insensitive, concerned only about how much time had passed.”

The committee is expected to publish a report on the Afghanistan withdrawal this summer.