The House Select Committee responsible for investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol Hill riot has issued more subpoenas to several more of former United States President Donald Trump's associates as the legal battle for information continues.
The six new subpoenas target top individuals from the former president's re-election campaign that panel members argue were involved in instigating the idea that the 2020 presidential elections were fraudulent. The subpoenas were sent to individuals, including William Stepien, Jason Miller, John Eastman, Michael Flynn, Angel McCallum, and Bernard Keri.
House Committee Subpoenas
The committee is using the subpoenas to urge all six individuals to provide documents by Nov. 23, with depositions scheduled over the last week of November into mid-December. In a statement, Select Committee Chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson argued that Trump's closest allies and advisors were responsible for driving a campaign of misinformation.
Thompson added that these individuals also planned ways to stop the counting of Electoral College votes amid their attempts. The official said the committee needed to know every single detail about the efforts to overturn the election, including the people they talked to in the White House and in Congress and how they were connected to citizens who joined the rally, CNN reported.
The six new subpoenas that the House Select Committee has issued now total 25, and they have received testimonies from more than 150 witnesses. Many expect the panel to issue more subpoenas as soon as later this week.
While the recent subpoenas focused on individuals whom the panel believes were involved in trying to overturn the elections, Eastman, in particular, is facing widespread criticism. The reason for this is that he spoke at the Jan. 6 rally where former President Trump gave a speech claiming election fraud and urged rioters to storm the Capitol.
Additionally, Eastman wrote a memo that the committee believes outlined, in his view, then-Vice President Mike Pence could be capable of stopping formal certification of Congress of Trump's reelection loss. "In the days before the January 6th attack, the former President's closest allies and advisors drove a campaign of misinformation about the election and planned ways to stop the count of Electoral College votes," said Thompson, Reuters reported.
Defying the Subpoenas
The investigation into the Capitol Hill riot focuses on figuring out exactly what caused the march into the building and preventing future similar incidents. Political strategist Steve Bannon is among the individuals who were previously issued subpoenas amid the investigations. He has been held in contempt, and negotiations are in place to criminally prosecute Bannon for dyeing the subpoena.
The situation comes as former President Trump has desperately tried to avoid giving the committee access to House records. The Republican businessman filed a lawsuit to stop the National Archives and Records Administration from releasing documents related to the Jan. 6 Capitol Hill riot. Trump has also called on his former associates, such as Bannon, to defy the committee's subpoenas.
Amy and Kylie Jane Kremer, a mother-daughter team who are responsible for organizing the Women for America First rally near the White House the morning of Jan. 6, were also issued subpoenas, USA Today reported.
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