Former President Donald Trump filed a lawsuit Friday against the January 6 House Committee and its members to avoid a congressional subpoena to compel him to testify. The news comes ahead of a planned event on Tuesday at which Trump is expected to announce that he is running for president in 2024.
The committee voted unanimously to subpoena Trump on Oct. 13, with committee chairman Bennie Thompson (D-MS) and vice chairman Liz Cheney (W-WY) writing, “As demonstrated in our hearings, We have gathered overwhelming evidence, including dozens of your former appointees and associates that you personally orchestrated and oversaw a multi-pronged effort to subvert the 2020 presidential election and obstruct the peaceful transfer of power.
It was unclear at the time whether Trump would challenge the order, which required him to testify and turn over documents related to his possible role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riots. He told his former associates and political allies to also refuse to testify at the committee hearings.
One of them, former Trump adviser Steve Bannon, was sentenced to four months in prison for ignoring commission subpoenas.
Trump himself responded to his subpoena after it was issued during a televised hearing, sending a 14-page letter to the committee that began: “THE 2020 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION WAS FIXED AND STOLEN!”
In the lawsuit filed today in Florida’s Southern District ( read it here ), Trump and his legal team seek declaratory and injunctive relief, writing that “other presidents and former presidents have voluntarily agreed to testify in response to a congressional subpoena or documents .” to submit, no president or former president is ever required to do so.
It adds: “As a result of the commission’s self-proclaimed ‘unprecedented’ actions, President Trump has been placed in the untenable position of choosing between upholding his rights and the constitutional prerogatives of the executive branch, or refusing the subpoena issued to him has been issued, to risk.” As a result, former President Trump is turning to the courts to uphold his rights and executive independence, which is consistently upheld by the courts and approved by the Department of Justice.
No timeline has been set for Trump’s testimony, although the committee previously said it would be targeted for sometime around Monday, Nov. 14 — a day before Trump’s possible announcement that he is looking for a job.
Author: Patrick Hip, TedJohnson
Source: Deadline
Bernice Bonaparte is an author and entertainment journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a passion for pop culture and a talent for staying up-to-date on the latest entertainment news, Bernice has become a trusted source for information on the entertainment industry.
