The chairman of the House Select Committee probing the tragic Jan. 6 brawl at the Capitol revealed on Thursday that the panel had subpoenaed four top government officials of Donald Trump’s administration, together with Mark Meadows and Steve Bannon, Reuters reports.
Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson said in a release that former White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino and former Defense Department official Kash Patel had been subpoenaed and told to submit evidence and attend court proceedings.
Meadows was Trump’s White House chief of staff and a former congressman. Bannon was Trump’s White House advisor.
Meadows’ spokesperson said he didn’t want to comment. Bannon and Scavino were unavailable for comment at the time of publication.
Patel said he was “disappointed, but not shocked” that the committee issued a subpoena before requesting his voluntary assistance in a statement.
On Jan. 6, a crowd of Trump supporters attacked the Capitol as Congress was convening to declare Democrat Joe Biden’s electoral win, causing the ceremony to be delayed for several hours while then-Vice President Mike Pence, members of Congress, staff, and media fled from protesters.
Almost 600 people have been detained on suspicion of being involved in the attack. It was the bloodiest attack on the seat of the United States government since the British assault during the War of 1812.
Meadows allegedly spoke with state and federal officials in an attempt to reverse the 2020 election or prevent Biden’s recognition, according to Thompson. Meadows was also allegedly in contact with organizers of the Jan. 6 demonstration, according to Thompson.
Thompson stated in a letter to Bannon that he had been participating in several talks about influencing members of Congress to oppose the declaration of Trump’s electoral defeat.
Trump dismissed Bannon in August 2017, but they eventually patched things up and remained in touch. Bannon was pardoned by Trump after he was accused with defrauding the president’s own supporters in a bid to obtain private cash for a border wall.
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