The Democrats who’ve been the impetus of the January 6th select committee have been doing their darnedest in order to prove to the nation that their investigation into the Capitol insurrection will not be a partisan affair. They used to also claim that this wouldn’t be a re-do of then-President Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial either, but Republican Congresswoman Liz Cheney put that claim to rest on Tuesday all by herself.
The apparently-biased nature of the proceedings has some Republicans nervous, and many others angry.
Those emotions are likely to be exacerbated this week, however, as the DOJ is now openly suggesting that members of the Trump White House will get no special government protection from the Committee’s attempts to interview them.
Former Trump administration officials can testify to Congress about Donald Trump’s role in the deadly January attack on the Capitol and his efforts to subvert the results of the 2020 election, the justice department (DoJ) has said in a letter obtained by the Guardian.
The move by the justice department to decline to assert executive privilege for Trump’s acting attorney general, Jeffrey Rosen, clears the path for other top former officials to also testify to congressional committees investigating the Capitol attack without fear of repercussions.
The justice department authorised witnesses to appear specifically before the two committees. But a DoJ official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters, said they expected that approval to extend to the 6 January select committee that began proceedings on Tuesday.
The decision will certainly have some member of the GOP crying foul, as they attempt to undermine the credibility of the committee but suggesting that it’s nothing more than a partisan hit job on Donald Trump, meant to diminish his chances in the 2024 election.
