The Jan. 6 committee’s referral of Jim Jordan, and other Republicans to the House Ethics Committee for dodging subpoenas is necessary — but won’t end well.
In a sane world, the House Jan. 6 committee’s final report would be a disaster for congressional Republicans. Not only was former President Donald Trump referred to the Justice Department for criminal charges, but four GOP House members were also referred to the Ethics Committee — including Kevin McCarthy of California, who is aiming to become speaker of the House next year.
At issue: McCarthy and his fellow Republicans refused to respond to the committee’s subpoenas as part of its investigation into the attack. Referring these Republicans is an appropriate, even necessary, step by the committee — but a fruitless one, unfortunately. Absent a crime, the body that the Constitution charges with enforcing discipline on Congress is … Congress. And the way things are set up, it seems highly unlikely that McCarthy or any of his fellow scofflaws will face any serious consequences.
McCarthy is joined in this ignominy by Arizona’s Andy Biggs, Ohio’s Jim Jordan and Pennsylvania’s Scott Perry. According to the executive summary of the committee’s final report, each of these men had information that was crucial to the investigation into the attack on the Capitol. Jordan and Perry “were involved in discussions with White House officials about Vice President Pence’s role on January 6th as early as November 2020.” Biggs worked “to gather signatures from Arizona lawmakers endorsing fake Trump electors.” And as House minority leader, McCarthy, “among other things, had multiple communications with President Trump, Vice President Pence, and others on and related to January 6th.”
It seems highly unlikely that McCarthy or any of his fellow scofflaws will face any serious consequences.
After the committee’s requests for voluntary cooperation were rejected, it voted in May to approve subpoenas for the four members. The Republicans’ responses ranged from dismissal to utter disparagement of the committee’s work.
