NO SHOW: Jan. 6 Committee Threatens ‘Next Steps’ When Trump Blows Off Deposition Deadline
L: Joe Raedle/Getty Images R: Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images
The January 6 Committee announced that former President Donald Trump “failed to comply” with their subpoena, heavily suggested Trump acted in bad faith, and vowed to consider “next steps” to deal with his non-compliance.
On Monday evening, the committee announced:
Former President Trump has refused to comply with the Select Committee’s subpoena requiring him to appear for a deposition.
His attorneys have made no attempt to negotiate an appearance, and his lawsuit parades out many of the same arguments that courts have rejected repeatedly.
Donald Trump orchestrated a scheme to overturn a presidential election and block the transfer of power. He is obligated to provide answers to the American people.
The committee will evaluate next steps in the litigation and regarding the former President’s noncompliance.
Chairman Bennie Thompson and Vice Chair Liz Cheney added in a statement:
Former President Trump has failed to comply with the Select Committee’s subpoena requiring him to appear for a deposition today. Even though the former President initially suggested that he would testify before the committee, he has since filed a lawsuit asking the courts to protect him from giving testimony. His attorneys have made no attempt to negotiate an appearance of any sort, and his lawsuit parades out many of the same arguments that courts have rejected repeatedly over the last year. The truth is that Donald Trump, like several of his closest allies, is hiding from the Select Committee’s investigation and refusing to do what more than a thousand other witnesses have done.
The January 6 Committee held its purported final hearing several weeks ago, which featured never-before-seen evidence and testimony, new footage of the attack from inside and outside the Capitol, and climaxed with a dramatic vote to subpoena Trump.
Trump was scheduled to be deposed by the committee on Monday after an attempt to delay his testimony. But in a last-minute filing Friday night, Trump’s lawyers threw everything, including the kitchen sink, to try and block the order to testify.
Trump’s no-show will likely run out the clock for Trump if Republicans succeed in taking the majority in the House of Representatives and disband the committee, as they have promised to do.
