Some Congressional Democrats have begun to express their frustration with House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler's (D., N.Y.) leadership of the investigations into the Mueller report and whether President Trump obstructed justice.
"Any of the other chairmen would have played it differently," an unnamed Democrat lawmaker told the Hill, criticizing Nadler's use of the committee's investigative powers following the release of the Mueller report.
Former White House counsel Don McGahn and Attorney General Bill Barr received subpoenas from the committee since the report was released but ignored them without strong enough pushback from Nadler, according to the Hill's sources.
If "Republicans don't comply with something, we should be ready to ... slap them on the wrist right away. Not wait days and days and days and then figure out what we want to do," the Democrat lawmaker added.
"They have all hammer, no finesse," one lawmaker reflected about Nadler and his committee's strategy regarding their investigations of President Trump.
"Nadler is just a sailor," said a separate unnamed Democratic lawmaker. "You need a pirate," to lead the investigations into President Trump, the lawmaker explained.
Since the Mueller report was released over seven weeks ago Nadler's committee has failed to produce any notable victories against the President or his administration. He has tried to get former Special Counsel Robert Mueller to testify before the committee but has yet to receive a concrete response from Mueller on appearing before the committee.
Nadler's critics contend his overall response to the Mueller report and potential impeachment proceedings "has been sloppy, [and] disorganized," citing lack of communication between the chairman and other committee members. While approximately sixty Democratic House members have voiced their support to open impeachment proceedings into the president, Nadler, whose committee would initiate any potential impeachment efforts, has been timid to move towards impeachment instead insisting Democrats take their time to gather evidence through subpoenas and committee hearings.
Nadler did not respond to his unnamed critics in the Hill's original reporting, but his Congressional allies, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi, praised Nadler for his role in navigating the investigations while also keeping the committee focused on its legislative priorities as well.