In an official letter, the January 6 Committee, has officially withdrawn its subpoena for former President Donald Trump to testify before Congress. Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), Chairman of the January 6 Committee, in a letter sent to Trump attorney David Warrington, formally said that the subpoena he issued to Trump back in October would no longer be pursued. Thompson wrote-
“As you may know, the Select Committee has concluded its hearings, released its final report and will very soon reach its end. In light of the imminent end of our investigation, the Select Committee can no longer pursue the specific information covered by the subpoena,”
“Therefore, through this letter, I hereby formally withdraw the subpoena issued to former President Trump, and notify you that he is no longer obligated to comply or produce records in response to said subpoena,” adding… “We appreciate your engagement with the Select Committee on this matter.”
Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), Chairman of the January 6 Committee
According to an article written by Politico last month –
“Former President Donald Trump is suing to block a subpoena the House Jan. 6 Committee issued seeking to force him to testify next week.”
“The lawsuit, filed in federal court in West Palm Beach, Fla., Friday evening, argues that the subpoena intrudes on executive privilege still guaranteed to him by the Constitution even though he left office more than 21 months ago. The suit also challenges the committee’s authority on other grounds.”
“Former President Trump turns to the courts to preserve his rights and Executive Branch independence consistently upheld by the courts and endorsed by the Department of Justice,” Trump’s lawyers wrote in the 41-page complaint.”
“The select committee’s subpoena required Trump to appear for a deposition on Monday, though he had appeared poised to challenge that timeframe. Trump’s lawsuit effectively dooms any chance for the panel to compel his testimony, ensuring a complex and lengthy legal battle that is sure to last beyond the committee’s lifespan. The panel is slated to dissolve at the end of the year.”
“President Trump, as a former President of the United States, has absolute immunity from being compelled to testify before Congress regarding his actions while in office,” the suit says. “The Committee’s Subpoena is explicitly addressed to President Trump in his capacity as a former President, seeking information about his actions while President, and for the purpose of regulating future Presidents and is therefore invalid.”
“The subpoena’s prospects for securing testimony from Trump always seemed remote for a variety of reasons, including the fact that the Justice Department has an ongoing criminal investigation into efforts to subvert the 2020 election.”
-Politico
On his Truth Social account, the former president responded to the news. Trump said-
“was just advised that the Unselect Committee of political Thugs has withdrawn the Subpoena of me concerning the January 6 protest of the CROOKED 2020 presidential election. They probably did so because they knew I did nothing wrong, or they were about to lose in Court. Perhaps the FBI’s involvement in RIGGING the Election played into their decision. In any event the subpoena is DEAD!
-Former President Donald Trump
Another pivotal reason may be the newly released report last week by House Republicans, shedding light on how the Capitol’s security was left vulnerable to massive crowds. Their 141-page report explores, at length, the security measures taken (or ignored as the case may be) leading up to the events of January 6, 2021, an issue they say the January 6 committee has “thus far ignored.” Said to be packed with actual facts, the report is a powerful testimony of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s neglect of her duties, to secure the Capitol, and the unfolding of a climate of vulnerability, established by the Democratic House Leadership.
The Republican investigative report, serves as a counter document, to the select committee’s conclusive report summarizing its investigation of criminal / ethics violations and their charges as put forward. The January 6th Committee has asked the DOJ to charge Trump related to the January 6th Capitol violence.
According to the Republicans’ report, the Democrat House leadership together with law enforcement leaders, in the Capitol Police, apparently were quite worried about the “optics” of any enhanced Capitol security, before the protest. In their report, the Republicans wrote-
“Leadership and law enforcement failures within the U.S. Capitol left the complex vulnerable on January 6, 2021. The Democrat-led investigation in the House of Representatives, however, has disregarded those institutional failings that exposed the Capitol to violence that day.”
-Report By House Republicans
Apparently, Capitol Police, were given plenty of notice and were made aware of security threats to the Capitol on January 6 dating back to mid-December. The report divulged that-
“Prior to that day, the U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) had obtained sufficient information from an array of channels to anticipate and prepare for the violence that occurred.”
-Report By House Republicans
The report, released last week Wednesday, of findings from an investigation into the U.S. Capitol’s security preparedness ahead of the 2021 riot, was commissioned by the five Republicans initially set to serve on the January 6 select committee. The report was put forward by Reps. Jim Jordan (R-OH), Rodney Davis (R-IL), Jim Banks (R-IN),Troy Nehls (R-TX), and Kelly Armstrong (R-ND) — all members whom Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) had originally appointed to the January 6 Committee. Of the report Rep. Banks stated-
“Our report exposes the partisanship, incompetence and indifference that led to the disaster on January 6 and the leading role Speaker Pelosi and her office played in the security failure at the Capitol,”. “Unlike the sham January 6th Committee, House Republicans produced a useful report that will keep Capitol and USCP officers safe with no subpoena power and no budget.”
-Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN)
So whether, the committee realized that more substance has been put forth, that reveals the actual events of that day, or events leading up to it such as - the newly released Twitter Files showing the FBI’s interfering involvement in the 2020 elections, the Trump lawsuit evidences that opposed their subpoena of Trump to testify, or the clearly missing facts related to the January 6th event, that are revealed in the investigation by House Republicans – the committee has essentially acknowledged that it cannot any longer compel Trump to testify before them.
Likely they are content to know that they have publicly blamed Trump for an event that he did not incite, that they are unable to prove, and for which they have referred him to Biden’s DOJ. And now, they are requesting prosecution of Trump for his role - as they alone have defined it.
As with the Democratic party in general, it’s not about what you can honestly prove – it’s about how loudly or profoundly you can claim someone’s guilt, and see what sticks when you throw it up against the wall in a court of law. They are really very efficient at wasting tax-payers money, in “hearings” before the court of public opinion, to paint a picture of Trump, or anyone for that matter, whom they need silenced.
Hopefully, in the new congress, this matter and many others, will get a new review under the watchful eyes of Republicans who, can and should get to the bottom of the long list of Democratically involved crimes against the American people. A day of reckoning needs to happen.
“In every life, there comes a day of reckoning - a time when unsettled scores demand retribution, and our own lies and transgressions are finally laid bare.”
-Emily Thorne