Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-California), a member of the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, uprising, said she was “surprised” the Justice Department didn’t assign to appear Cassidy Hutchinson, the former White House aide who gave a bombshell testimony last week.
In an interview with NBC’s “Meet The Press” on Sunday, Lofgren said she didn’t share the concern raised by federal prosecutors in a New York Times report that they “felt caught off guard” after eavesdropping. Hutchinson’s testimony, as they did not have access to his previous closed-door depositions.
The Justice Department has asked the committee to turn over transcripts of the witness interviews, but the panel has so far held back. A committee spokesperson told The Times that the panel may share those transcripts with the DOJ as soon as they complete their public hearings in July.
The committee has not yet announced the date of its next public hearing.
“We are not an arm of the Department of Justice,” Lofgren told NBC’s “Meet The Press.” “We are a legislative committee. They have subpoena power. They could subpoena Ms. Hutchinson. I’m surprised they didn’t.
“I was surprised that the prosecutors were surprised,” Lofgren continued. “What are they doing there?” They have a much greater opportunity to enforce their subpoenas than our legislative committee. »
The Justice Department is investigating the insurgency, but it remains unclear whether it will pursue a criminal case against Trump.
Cheney told ABC’s “This Week” that the committee would consider whether to issue a criminal referral of Trump to the DOJ.
“The Justice Department doesn’t have to wait for the committee to make a criminal referral,” Cheney said. “There could be more than one criminal reference.”
Hutchinson shared previously unknown details about what was going on inside the White House leading up to and including the day of the Capitol Riots. Hutchinson said his former boss, chief of staff Mark Meadows, was warned Jan. 6 could turn violent. Meadows and Rudy Giuliani reportedly asked for presidential pardons after the uprising, Hutchinson said.
The former Meadows aide also relayed to Trump’s deputy chief of staff Anthony Ornato, telling him the former president tried to grab the wheel of his limo and pounced on Secret Service agent Bobby Engel , after Engel refused to drive him to the Capitol for security reasons.
Yet Ornato would now have denied Hutchinson’s account.
“We had questioned Mr. Ornato several times,” Lofgren said. “His memory doesn’t seem as accurate as his. We would certainly welcome them back if they wish. »
Hutchinson also changed attorneys last month, according to Politico, instead hiring Jody Hunt, who served as chief of staff to Trump’s first attorney general, Jeff Sessions. The change reportedly signaled his willingness to cooperate more with the committee’s investigation.
“The Trump world was paying for her lawyers, which was very problematic for her,” Lofgren told NBC’s Chuck Todd.
Hutchinson testified behind closed doors four times before appearing at the committee’s Jan. 6 public hearing on Tuesday.
Following Hutchinson’s compelling testimony, the committee announced Wednesday that it had issued a subpoena for White House attorney Pat Cipollone.
“The select committee’s investigation uncovered evidence that Mr. Cipollone repeatedly raised legal and other concerns regarding President Trump’s activities on January 6 and in the days leading up to it,” said a press release announcing the assignment.
Lofgren said she expected Hutchinson’s appearance to encourage Cipollone to appear before the committee.
“Our intention is to hear from him, and I think given Ms. Hutchinson’s testimony, he was trying to prevent crimes from being committed that day,” Lofgren told NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “I suppose he would like to come in.”
Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) told CNN’s “State of the Union” that other witnesses had indicated their willingness to testify after the final public hearing.
“It happens every day,” Kinzinger told CNN’s Dana Bash. “Every day we get new people who show up and say, ‘Hey, I didn’t think that part of the story that I knew was important. “”
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