The vice chair of the House Jan. 6 committee said Donald Trump has attempted to contact a witness who was talking to the panel investigating the attack on the Capitol.
Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., said Tuesday that the Justice Department has been notified.
“We will take any effort to influence witness testimony very seriously,” Cheney said.
The panel investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol siege is delving into what it calls the final phase of Trump’s multi-pronged effort to halt Joe Biden’s victory. As dozens of lawsuits and false claims of voter fraud fizzled, Trump met late into the night of Dec. 18 with attorneys at the White House before tweeting the rally invitation — “Be there, will be wild!” Members of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers groups who are now facing rare sedition charges readily answered.
“This tweet served as a call to action — and in some cases a call to arms.” said one panel member, Rep. Stephanie Murphy, D-Fla.
Tuesday’s hearing is the seventh for the Jan. 6 committee. Over the past month, the panel has created a narrative of a defeated Trump “detached from reality,” clinging to false claims of voter fraud and working feverishly to reverse his election defeat. It all culminated with the attack on the Capitol, the committee says.