Jan. 6 Panel Subpoenas Lawyers Who Worked to Overturn Trump’s Loss

WASHINGTON — The Home committee investigating the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol on Tuesday subpoenaed a half-dozen legal professionals and different allies of former President Donald J. Trump who promoted false claims about widespread fraud within the 2020 election and labored to overturn his loss.

Those that have been despatched subpoenas for paperwork and testimony participated in a variety of makes an attempt to invalidate Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s victory, together with submitting lawsuits, pressuring native election officers to vary the outcomes and drafting proposed government orders to grab voting machines.

“The choose committee is looking for details about makes an attempt to disrupt or delay the certification of electoral votes and any efforts to corruptly change the result of the 2020 election,” Consultant Bennie Thompson, Democrat of Mississippi and the chairman of the committee, mentioned in a press release. “The six people we’ve subpoenaed at the moment all have data associated to these issues and can assist the choose committee higher perceive all the varied methods employed to doubtlessly have an effect on the result of the election.”

Greater than 550 witnesses have testified earlier than the committee, which is tasked with writing an authoritative report in regards to the violence of a yr in the past that left greater than 150 cops injured and resulted in a number of deaths.

The committee additionally intends to make suggestions to forestall such an episode from taking place once more, and is contemplating making prison referrals ought to its investigators uncover any crimes not already charged by the Justice Division.

The subpoenas issued on Tuesday direct the witnesses to take a seat for interviews in March.

Amongst these summoned was Cleta Mitchell, a lawyer who the panel mentioned promoted false claims of election fraud to members of Congress and took part in a name through which Mr. Trump tried to stress Georgia’s secretary of state to “discover” sufficient votes to reverse his loss there.

Ms. Mitchell was additionally in touch with Mr. Trump on Jan. 6 and the times prior, the committee mentioned it had discovered.

Kenneth Chesebro, one other lawyer who was subpoenaed on Tuesday, promoted authorized theories throughout the Trump marketing campaign supporting the usage of slates of bogus electors in states the previous president misplaced. Mr. Chesebro advised the Trump marketing campaign his efforts would “‘bolster’ the argument for delaying the electoral certification” and make the general public consider the election “‘was seemingly rigged, and stolen by Biden and Harris, who weren’t legitimately elected,’” the committee wrote in a letter accompanying Mr. Chesebro’s subpoena.

The committee additionally issued a subpoena to Christina Bobb, who works for One America Information Community and was reportedly concerned in efforts to draft an government order for Mr. Trump that will have directed federal businesses to grab voting machines in quite a few states. Ms. Bobb was current within the “struggle room” of Mr. Trump’s private lawyer, Rudolph W. Giuliani, within the Willard Lodge on Jan. 6, the committee mentioned.

Ms. Bobb is alleged to be writing a guide about Jan. 6 and interviewed Mr. Trump for the mission, that means she would more than likely have notes that the committee may acquire by means of a subpoena.

One other lawyer subpoenaed on Tuesday, Katherine Friess, was additionally reportedly concerned in efforts to draft an government order that will have directed federal businesses to grab voting machines, and at one level “traveled to Michigan in an try and acquire voting machine information instantly from native officers,” the committee mentioned in a letter accompanying her subpoena.

Kurt Olsen, a pro-Trump lawyer, additionally reportedly ready a draft government order for Mr. Trump that will have directed the Justice Division to “take voter motion,” and had a number of telephone calls with the previous president on Jan. 6, in keeping with the committee’s assertion accompanying his subpoena.

The panel additionally issued a subpoena to Phillip Kline, a former Kansas legal professional basic who convened a gathering between Mr. Trump and greater than 300 state legislators “in an try and disseminate purported proof of election fraud” and encourage legislators to signal a letter urging Mike Pence, then the vp, to delay the electoral certification on Jan. 6, the committee mentioned.

Not one of the potential witnesses responded to requests for remark.

Maggie Haberman contributed reporting.