Donald Trump’s former national security advisor and pardon recipient Michael Flynn has been subpoenaed as part of the Jan. 6 Committee’s ongoing investigation of the attack on Congress.
Also on the list: John Eastman, the lawyer who advised Trump on his legal options for stealing a second term, and Trump’s 2020 campaign manager, Bill Stepien.
Jason Miller, a senior advisor to Trump’s campaign, and Angela McCallum, the national executive assistant on the campaign, were also subpoenaed by the committee. So was Bernard Kerik, the Trump pardon recipient, Giuliani consigliere and former New York City police commissioner.
The committee is currently seeking criminal contempt charges against one previous subpoena recipient, Steve Bannon, for refusing to testify. And there could be more on the way: After former Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark, who aided Trump’s effort to stay in power, refused the committee’s request to testify, Chair Bennie Thompson (D-MS) said more contempt charges were “on the table.”
Letters from Thompson to the subpoenaed individuals Monday laid out their connections to the Capitol attack and the weeks preceding it.
“You reportedly attended a December 18, 2020, meeting in the Oval Office during which participants discussed seizing voting machines, declaring a national emergency, invoking certain national security emergency powers, and continuing to spread the message that the November 2020 election had been tainted by widespread fraud,” the letter to Flynn read, linking to an Axios report about the off-the-walls meeting.
Eastman’s letter, the longest of the batch, went over his role advising Trump on strategies to interrupt the Electoral College counting process and remain in power. It also noted, “you were at the Willard Hotel ‘war room’ with Steve Bannon and others on the days leading up to January 6 where the focus was on delaying or blocking the certification of the election.”
Thompson’s letter noted that, though Eastman served as an attorney for Trump, the lawyer has also commented publicly on a podcast “that President Trump has authorized you to discuss the matters at issue, thus waiving any applicable attorney-client and attorney work product privileges,” according to the letter.
Not holding my breath, but I’m glad they’re keeping the pressure on.
Waiting for DOJ to respond to Bannon’s contempt. Very frustrating, unless the plan is to to a bulk charging for all those who will ignore the subpoenas.
For those of us of “a certain age”, (as the saying goes), the parallels to the Watergate Hearings are interesting, and this is beginning to look like it could become some pretty compelling political theater. The GOP tried hard to kill this before we got here, but oooooh, look, the committee is beginning to line up some potentially spectacular witnesses… just in time for the Mid-term elections. I recall something about Watergate damaging the Republican hold on the Senate and the House for several election cycles.
You know who WASN’T subpoenaed as part of the Jan. 6 Committee’s ongoing investigation of the attack on Congress?
Hillary Clinton.
Wow. I hadn’t really thought about that. I suppose Qevin McCathy( Q - Leningrad) is no beginning to second guess his refusal to put any GQP members on the committee; he’s going to be reduced to chanting “Benghaaaaaaaaaaaaaaazi” from the sidelines.