The House committee investigating Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol attack on Monday recommended a formal ethics inquiry into House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (Calif.) and other top allies of former President Trump to take place after they refused to cooperate with the investigation.
The recommendations sent to the House Ethics Committee are not as intense of a step as having criminal referrals sent to the Department of Justice, which they also did on Monday against Trump and many others in his inner circle who the committee deemed to be connected to the Capitol riot.
However, the ethics complaints could still bring the action of McCarthy and Reps. Jim Jordan (Ohio), Scott Perry (Pa.), and Andy Biggs (Ariz.) are under scrutiny. The actions taken by these individuals range from being part of planning meetings with Donald Trump for Jan. 6 to having a conversation with Trump while the riot was taking place. The committee initially requested the voluntary appearance of these four members before the panel, however, after their refusal, an official subpoena for their testimony had been issued in May.
Still, none of the four complied with their subpoena and they continued to argue that this was a political witch hunt organized by those who opposed Donald Trump and did not want to see him win another White House term. These accusations have also grown louder following Trump’s announcement and official launch of his 2024 presidential elections.
The committee had determined after long discussions that ignoring congressional subpoenas is a dangerous precedent that should not go unpunished as it can affect the effectiveness of Congress.
