White House to Congress: Go Pound Sand

The White House is having none of the subpoena shenanigans of the Congressional Dems:

WASHINGTON (CNN) — White House Counsel Fred Fielding will be sending a letter Monday to Sen. Patrick Leahy and Rep. John Conyers reiterating the White House’s refusal to comply with the subpoena for documents related to the U.S. attorneys’ controversy, a senior administration official told CNN.

Democrats have set Monday morning as a deadline for Fielding to at least provide a log of what documents the White House is withholding and to provide further justification for why the White House is asserting executive privilege.

The senior administration official said Fielding will refuse on both counts — will not turn over a log of documents and will point out that the White House previously explained its justification for executive privilege by releasing letters on June 28 from Fielding and the solicitor general.

“We’ve shown an extraordinary amount of accommodation,” said the official. “It’s clear to us what the Democrats want is a confrontation.”

There will be a big fight, but Congress will lose. They do not have the power to compel documents from the Executive Branch on any topics they choose.