WASHINGTON – Republican Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio, one of US President Donald Trump’s closest allies in Congress, on Sunday declined a request for an interview from the committee investigating the uprising. at the Capitol on January 6.
In an emotional letter to committee chair Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., Jordan said, “The American people are tired of Democrats’ relentless investigations and partisan witch hunts. .”
He said the request for an interview “is an unprecedented and inappropriate request to examine the basis for a colleague’s decision on a particular matter pending before the House of Commons”, adding, “Request This demand is beyond the bounds of any legitimate investigation, violates core constitutional principles, and will further undermine legislative norms.”
Thompson told Jordan in a letter last month that the panel wanted him to provide information surrounding his communications with Trump on January 6 and Trump’s efforts to challenge the outcome of the meeting. election 2020.
“We understand that you had at least one and possibly multiple communications with President Trump on January 6,” the letter read. “We would like to discuss each such exchange in detail with you.”
In Sunday’s response, Jordan asserted, “I have no relevant information that would assist the Selection Committee in advancing any legitimate legislative purposes.”
He accused Democrats of using the committee as “a partisan joke against their political opponents.”
Jordan is a staunch supporter of Trump’s false claims about voter fraud. The lawmaker made those statements during a hearing in October about a motion to keep former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon for refusing to comply with a congressional subpoena.
During that hearing, Jordan admitted that he spoke with Trump on the day of the attack.
“Of course, I spoke to the president,” Jordan told members of the Rules Committee, in response to a question from the panel’s chairman, Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass. “I spoke to him that day. I was clear on that. I don’t remember the number of times, but not about me. I know you want clarification on that.”
The panel is also seeking information regarding Jordan’s meetings with Trump and members of his administration in November and December 2020, and in early January 2021, “about strategies to overturn the results of the 2020 election.” Thompson’s letter said the committee was also interested in any discussions Jordan may have had during that time about the possibility of the president pardoning those involved in any aspect of the Capitol attack. or plans for two rallies to take place that day.
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