The Senate Judiciary Committee authorized subpoenas Thursday as part of the panel’s inquiry into Supreme Court ethics, as exasperated Republicans walked out of a contentious meeting before the final roll call vote ended.
With only Democrats voting, the 11-0 outcome will allow Senate Judiciary Chair Richard J. Durbin to issue subpoenas for billionaire Republican donor Harlan Crow and conservative judicial activist Leonard Leo as the panel looks further into reported lavish gifts provided to justices on the highest court.
The issue had languished on the committee agenda for weeks, but the final vote happened relatively quickly Thursday with some procedural confusion.
