Array
The House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot referred four GOP lawmakers — including the presumptive next Speaker and future Judiciary Committee chairman — to the chamber’s ethics committee on Monday for failing to comply with subpoenas to testify.
The panel in May subpoenaed House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) along with Reps. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), Scott Perry (R-Pa.), and Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) to testify after the lawmakers declined to voluntarily speak to the panel about information deemed “relevant to the investigation,” according to an executive summary of the panel’s forthcoming final report.
“None of the members was willing to provide information, which forced the select committee to consider alternative means of securing evidence about the conduct of these members and the information they might have,” according to the document.
As with the select committee’s referral of former President Trump to the Justice Department for potential criminal charges, the referral to the Ethics Committee does not guarantee future action. The committee does have the power to hold hearings, conduct investigations and report suggested punishments to the full House. The ethics panel is evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats, so is not subject to the traditional maneuvering of majority or minority parties.
