The Jan. 6 Capitol riots committee announced it has sent subpoenas to five House members: House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA), Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ), and Rep. Mo Brooks (R-AL). According to a news release from the committee, it “sent letters to these five Members of Congress seeking voluntary cooperation with the investigation.”
“Regrettably, the individuals receiving subpoenas today have refused and we’re forced to take this step to help ensure the committee uncovers facts concerning January 6th,” committee chair Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) said in a statement. “We urge our colleagues to comply with the law, do their patriotic duty, and cooperate with our investigation as hundreds of other witnesses have done.”
According to the committee, the subpoenaed House members “include those who participated in meetings at the White House, those who had direct conversations with President Trump leading up to and during the attack on the Capitol, and those who were involved in the planning and coordination of certain activities on and before January 6th.”
The most notable of the five is Rep. McCarthy for multiple reasons. For one, McCarthy could take over as House Speaker if Republicans secure a majority in the House at November’s midterm elections. He has also acknowledged he spoke with Trump on Jan. 6, with the content of those conversations being highly sought after by the committee.
McCarthy has long been a vocal opponent of the committee, going back to when current House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) rejected two of his picks for the committee. He ended up withdrawing the rest of his picks, leading to the appointments of Reps. Liz Cheney (R-WY) and Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) to the committee.
“They’re not conducting a legitimate investigation,” McCarthy told reporters after the riots committee’s subpoenas were announced. “Seems as though they just want to go after their political opponents.”
Rep. Perry, who also vocally denied the committee’s request, described the investigation as a “charade,” calling Thursday’s subpoenas “all about headlines.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.