--- title: Comey Resists Closed Interview After House Republican Subpoena description: A congressional committee has subpoenaed James Comey for an interview, but he only wants to do it if the event is public. canonical: https://time.com/5462085/comey-congress-interview-subpoena-house-republicans/ author: TIME Staff article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-11-22T20:09:27.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T22:06:59.343Z article:section: Politics og:title: James Comey Resists Closed-Door Congress Interview After Being Subpoenaed by House Republicans og:description: "Let's have a hearing and invite everyone to see" og:url: https://time.com/5462085/comey-congress-interview-subpoena-house-republicans/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta969616337e7e7e4/69893fc7e76ad27bb4633952/gettyimages-978816002.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: Former FBI Director Comey Speaks In Berlin og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: James Comey Resists Closed-Door Congress Interview After Being Subpoenaed by House Republicans twitter:description: "Let's have a hearing and invite everyone to see" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta969616337e7e7e4/69893fc7e76ad27bb4633952/gettyimages-978816002.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # James Comey Resists Closed-Door Congress Interview After Being Subpoenaed by House Republicans > Sponsored content. 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Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. It reaches 85,000 subscribers with a 37.0% open rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. by [TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Nov 22, 2018 8:09 PM UTC  Former FBI Director James Comey talks backstage before a panel discussion about his book "A Higher Loyalty" on June 19, 2018 in Berlin, Germany. Former FBI Director James Comey talks backstage before a panel discussion about his book "A Higher Loyalty" on June 19, 2018 in Berlin, Germany. Carsten Koall—Getty Images by [TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Nov 22, 2018 8:09 PM UTC WASHINGTON — A congressional committee has subpoenaed former FBI chief James Comey to make himself available for an interview, but he only wants to do it if the event is public. Comey says he’ll resist appearing behind closed doors Dec. 3\. He says of House Republicans: “I’ve seen enough of their selective leaking and distortion. Let’s have a hearing and invite everyone to see.” The House Judiciary Committee chairman, Rep. Bob Goodlatte of Virginia, subpoenaed Comey as part of an investigation into what some Republicans consider FBI bias against Donald Trump during the 2016 election. Comey tweets: “I’m still happy to sit in the light and answer all questions.” But not privately. 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