The House committee investigating the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol has voted unanimously to hold former Trump advisers Peter Navarro and Dan Scavino in contempt of Congress for months of refusing to comply with the citations.
The commission argued Monday night that Navarro, a trade adviser to former President Donald Trump, and Scavino, a White House communications aide under Trump, have not cooperated in the congressional investigation into the deadly 2021 insurrection and, as a result, they are in contempt.
“They are not fooling anyone. They are required to comply with our investigation. They have refused to do so. And that is a crime,” Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson, the committee’s Democratic chairman, said in his opening remarks.
The recommendation for criminal charges now goes to the full House, where it is likely to be approved by the Democratic-majority chamber. Approval there would send the charges to the Justice Department, which has the final say on prosecution.
At Monday’s meeting, lawmakers again appealed to Attorney General Merrick Garland, who has yet to make a decision on contempt charges the House filed in December against former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows.
“We are holding ourselves accountable,” Rep. Adam Schiff, a member of the commission, said in his remarks. “The Justice Department should do the same.”
The commission is investigating the circumstances surrounding January 6, when pro-Trump rioters stormed the Capitol, fueled by the Republican’s false claims of a stolen election, hoping to prevent Congress from certifying election results showing that Democrat Joe Biden defeated Trump.
Ahead of the committee’s vote, the panel won a major legal victory in its search for information from Trump’s attorney, John Eastman, when a federal judge in California asserted Monday morning that Trump is “more likely than not.” has committed crimes in his attempt to stop the certification of the 2020 elections.
With that argument, Clinton-appointed US District Court Judge David Carter ordered the release of more than 100 emails from Eastman to the committee.
Charles Burnham, an attorney representing Eastman, said in a statement Monday that his client has a responsibility for his attorney-client privilege and his lawsuit against the committee “seeks to fulfill this responsibility.”
[Con información de AP]
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