(Washington) Republican House Leader Kevin McCarthy was invited Wednesday to testify before the parliamentary committee seeking to shed light on Donald Trump’s role in the attack on Capitol Hill.
Posted at 6:09 p.m.
“We ask you to cooperate voluntarily with our investigation on essential matters, and in particular on your conversations with President Trump before, during and after the violent attack of January 6” 2021, wrote to him the chairman of the commission Bennie Thompson, by offering him “a meeting on February 3 or 4”.
“You admitted having spoken directly with the former president while the violence was in progress”, which would allow to know “his state of mind” at that time, notes the elected Democrat in this letter published on the commission site.
The number 2 of the lower house had not made known his response Wednesday evening, but, given the opposition of his party to the work of this committee, it seems unlikely that he will accept the invitation.
This seeks to establish the responsibility of Donald Trump in the assault on the seat of Congress by several hundred of his supporters, when elected officials certified the victory of his rival Joe Biden in the presidential election.
Just after the attack, the violence of which shocked the whole world, Kevin McCarthy criticized Donald Trump who had scalded the minds of his voters with unsubstantiated allegations of electoral fraud for several weeks and until the minutes before their coup. .
But, like the vast majority of Republicans, the elected member of the House has since followed in the wake of the former president who retains a strong hold on his party and his voters.
His grip is such that none of his relatives or former allies has so far agreed to testify before the commission, even in the event of a subpoena.
The latter still interviewed more than 300 people, behind closed doors, and is moving forward in the hope of publishing its conclusions before the midterm elections in November 2022. If the Democrats lose control of the House during the ballot, it risks being dissolved by the Republicans.