Politics|Meadows Was Deeply Involved successful Fighting Election Outcome, Jan. 6 Panel Says
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/12/us/politics/mark-meadows-capitol-attack.html
The House committee laid retired its lawsuit for a contempt of Congress complaint against Mark Meadows, the main of unit to erstwhile President Donald J. Trump.
Dec. 12, 2021, 9:24 p.m. ET
WASHINGTON — The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 onslaught connected the Capitol released a study connected Sunday that laid retired its lawsuit for a contempt of Congress complaint against Mark Meadows, the main of unit to erstwhile President Donald J. Trump, presenting grounds of Mr. Meadows’s heavy engagement successful the effort to overturn the 2020 statesmanlike election.
In the 51-page document, the committee said it wanted to question Mr. Meadows astir an email helium had sent a time earlier the onslaught advising that the National Guard would beryllium utilized to support Trump supporters. The sheet said it besides wanted to inquire him astir an speech with an unnamed legislator astir rejecting electors for Joseph R. Biden Jr.
Mr. Meadows had been cooperating with the committee’s investigation, but helium refused to look for a scheduled deposition past week oregon to crook implicit further documents, citing Mr. Trump’s assertion of enforcement privilege. The committee, which is controlled by Democrats, is slated to ballot connected Monday to urge a contempt of Congress complaint against him for his refusal to cooperate with its subpoena. That complaint carries a punishment of up to a twelvemonth successful jail.
Before coming to loggerheads with the panel, Mr. Meadows provided much than 9,000 pages of records to the committee. The accusation they contained raised further questions, the sheet said.
Among the emails and substance messages that Mr. Meadows turned implicit were the following, the sheet said:
A Nov. 7 email that discussed an effort to put with authorities legislators to name slates of pro-Trump electors alternatively of the Biden electors chosen by the voters. Mr. Meadows’s substance messages besides showed him asking members of Congress however to enactment Mr. Trump successful interaction with authorities legislators.
Text messages Mr. Meadows exchanged with an unidentified legislator successful which helium recounted Mr. Trump's presumption connected Vice President Mike Pence’s quality to cull electors from definite states. Mr. Trump “thinks the legislators person the power, but the VP has powerfulness too,” Mr. Meadows wrote.
A Jan. 5 email successful which Mr. Meadows said the National Guard would beryllium contiguous astatine the Capitol connected Jan. 6 to “protect pro Trump people.”
Emails from Mr. Meadows to Justice Department officials connected Dec. 29, Dec. 30 and Jan. 1 successful which helium encouraged investigations of elector fraud, including allegations already rejected by national investigators and courts.
Text messages Mr. Meadows exchanged with members of Congress arsenic unit engulfed the Capitol connected Jan. 6 successful which lawmakers encouraged him to transportation Mr. Trump to discourage the attack, arsenic good arsenic a substance connection sent to 1 of the president’s household members successful which Mr. Meadows said helium was “pushing hard” for Mr. Trump to “condemn this.”
Text messages reflecting Mr. Meadows’s backstage skepticism astir immoderate of the chaotic nationalist statements astir allegations of wide predetermination fraud and compromised voting machines that were enactment distant by Sidney Powell, a lawyer moving with Rudolph W. Giuliani, Mr. Trump’s idiosyncratic lawyer.
The committee besides said it had a fig of questions prompted by Mr. Meadows’s caller book, “The Chief’s Chief,” and cited it arsenic grounds that his refusal to attest was “untenable.”
“Mr. Meadows has shown his willingness to speech astir issues related to the Select Committee’s probe crossed a assortment of media platforms — anywhere, it seems, but to the Select Committee,” the sheet wrote.
The committee said it besides had questions astir wherefore Mr. Meadows had utilized a idiosyncratic cellphone, a Signal relationship and 2 idiosyncratic Gmail accounts to behaviour authoritative business, and whether helium had decently turned implicit each records from those accounts to the National Archives.
The study comes arsenic the committee is scrutinizing a 38-page PowerPoint papers containing plans to overturn Mr. Biden’s victory. That document, which Mr. Meadows provided to the committee, urged Mr. Trump to state a nationalist exigency to cling to powerfulness and included an unsupported assertion that China and Venezuela had obtained power implicit the voting infrastructure successful a bulk of states.
Mr. Meadows’s lawyer has said helium provided the papers to the committee due to the fact that helium had received it by email and did thing with it.
Phil Waldron, a retired Army colonel who has promoted mendacious claims of predetermination fraud, said that helium had circulated the papers among Mr. Trump’s allies and among lawmakers connected Capitol Hill successful the days earlier the mob violence. Mr. Giuliani has identified Mr. Waldron arsenic a root of accusation for his ineligible campaign.
Mr. Waldron told The Washington Post that helium had visited the White House respective times aft past year’s predetermination and spoken with Mr. Meadows “maybe 8 to 10 times.”
Emily Cochrane contributed reporting.
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