On January 6, the committee summoned to court Kevin McCarthy, 4 other Republican lawmakers close to Trump

Washington – Selection Committee of the House of Representatives on Investigation January 6 storms the US Capitol issued subpoenas on Thursday to minority leader in the House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy and four other Republicans in the House of Representatives, which was a significant escalation of her efforts to obtain information from Republican lawmakers as part of the investigation.

In addition to McCarthy, the select committee summoned representatives of Jim Jordan of Ohio, Mo Brooks of Alabama, Scott Perry of Pennsylvania and Andy Biggs of Arizona to testify. The demand from the board is likely to spark a lawsuit, as others who have been summoned to testify before lawmakers, such as former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, appealed to the courts challenge subpoenas issued by House of Representatives investigators.

Committee Chair Benny Thompson, a Mississippi Democrat, said Republican lawmakers had information relevant to its investigation and the board was forced to issue subpoenas after they refused the opportunity to volunteer.

“We urge our colleagues to abide by the law, fulfill their patriotic duty and cooperate with our investigation, as hundreds of other witnesses have done,” he said in a statement.

When five Republicans challenge the lawsuits, Thompson said the committee could recommend allegations of contempt, as was the case with others, though members did not discuss the move. He said the board could also appeal to the House Ethics Committee or explore other civic options, adding that the committee was “taking it step by step” and hoping lawmakers would comply with their subpoenas.

The board asked Republican lawmakers to volunteer to investigate the January 6 riots, but they refused provide information to its members. Brooks, who spoke at a rally near the White House hours before the attack on the Capitol, said earlier this month that at least at some point in the past he would have given voluntary testimony. just do so if summoned to court and vowed to fight such a demand.

While the select committee issued summonses for McCarthy, Jordan, Brooks, Perry and Biggs, it also asked Republican spokesman Ronnie Jackson to attend volunteer meetings with investigators. It is unclear whether the group will sue Jackson in the future.

In earlier requests for information, the commission told Jordan and Brooks that they would like to discuss talks with former President Donald Trump on his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Investigators believes Perry played an “important role” in attempts to appoint former Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark as Attorney General, and found that the Pennsylvania Republican had communicated with Meadows about Clark through text messages and Signal, an encrypted messaging app.

The committee believes Biggs attended meetings at the White House and remotely regarding Jan. 6 planning, including a strategy for Vice President Mike Pence to reject voters in key states that Trump lost in the 2020 presidential election. The group also said it learned that Biggs was involved in plans to bring protesters to Washington on Jan. 6 as lawmakers convened for a joint meeting to count state voters and confirm President Biden’s victory. It also contains information about Biggs’ alleged efforts to persuade government officials that the 2020 election was stolen and turn to them for help in Trump’s attempts to overturn the results, and former White House officials have determined that Biggs is potentially involved in seeking a presidential pardon for activities related to Trump’s campaign to falsify the election results.

The group said McCarthy contacted Trump “before, during and after” on January 6 and wanted information about his talks with other lawmakers in the days after the January 6 attack. In a conference with Republican leaders, McCarthy said the then-president had admitted he was to blame for the attack. according to a recently published audio.

“He told me he had some responsibility for what happened. And he has to admit it,” said the chief Republican in the House of Representatives.

In another leaked call, McCarthy said he was considering asking Trump to resign.

“The only discussion I would like to discuss with him is that I think it will pass, and I would recommend that you resign,” he said. said MP Liz Cheney in a call on January 10, 2021 referring to the resolution on impeachment prepared by the Democrats of the House of Representatives. Cheney is one of two Republicans on the Jan. 6 committee and serves as vice chairman.

On Thursday at the Capitol, Cheney said the decision to sue members of Congress was “a reflection of how important and serious the investigation is and how serious the attack on the Capitol was.”

“We asked these five people to come and talk to us, and they refused, and they owe it,” the Wyoming Republican said. “They have critical information about the attack that we need to investigate.”

The committee has been signaling for weeks that it may issue subpoenas if congressmen do not voluntarily comply with their requests. MP Adam Kinsinger of Illinois, another Republican on the panel, said “Face of the Nation” earlier this month that committee “ultimately [do] all we can do is get this information “from members.

“We have requested information from various members. As to whether we will move on with the subpoena, [that] “It will be both a strategic, tactical decision and a question of whether we can do it and get timely information,” Kinzinger said in an interview on May 1.

On Thursday, Kinzinger said committee members were “well aware” of the “influence” summoned members of Congress to court, but “what happened on January 6 was unprecedented.”

McCarthy, Perry and Brooks said they had not yet received a summons before the committee announced them, but they condemned the trial conducted by their colleagues.

Perry told reporters the demands were to “divert America’s attention from their staggering record of America’s defeat,” while McCarthy said the committee “does not conduct a legitimate investigation.” In a statement, Brooks said his compliance depended on several factors, including whether his testimony would be public, whether the questions would be limited to events relevant to the Jan. 6 attack, and who would question him. The Republican from Alabama also said he plans to consult with other Republicans whom the committee wants to reject.

In its investigation into the January 6 uprising and related events, the committee issued more than 90 subpoenas to a wide range of former White House aides, Trump allies, former campaign officials, organizers of protests against the 2020 election and far-right extremist groups such as Proud Boys and Oath Keepers.

A number of potential witnesses have tried unsuccessfully to overturn subpoenas in federal court. Most recently, a U.S. district judge in Washington rejected the attempt The National Republican Committee blocked a summons from the selected committee to its fundraising provider by e-mail, finding that the committee was looking for information relevant to its investigation.

The House also has voted keep Meadows and former White House chief aides Dan Skavina, Peter Navarro and Steve Bannon in disrespect to Congress after they failed to execute the subpoena. Bannon was accused by the federal grand jury in November for refusing to appear at the testimony and hand over the documents, and has did not plead guilty.

Meanwhile, some members of the Trump family have spoken to House of Representatives investigators, including Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.

Much of the committee’s work so far has been conducted behind closed doors: lawmakers and staff have conducted more than 900 interviews and testimonies and obtained more than 100,000 documents during the investigation. But next month an examination of the January 6 attack will enter the public phase, which will be conducted by Fr. a series of eight hearings beginning June 9.

Zach Hudak and Alice Kim contributed to this report.