REX TILLERSON DID CORRECTLY CALL THE PRESIDENT AS HE SAW HIM

 SUBPOENAED GOP MEMBERS SHOULD AGREE TO TELL WHAT THEY KNOW

 

             …Kevin McCarthy falsely says the Jan 6 committee is not legitimate

 

McCarthy is probably the best person to tell the committee what Trump’s “state-of-mind” was on Jan 6.

 

In an extraordinary move, the very legitimate, House Jan. 6 Committee subpoenaed five Republican members of Congress, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (CA).  The same McCarthy, who assumes he is going to be the next House speaker after the midterm elections. This subpoena action might invite partisan payback if Republicans take hold of the chamber. Yet Mr. McCarthy and the other subpoenaed lawmakers are key witnesses to an episode in which the U.S. government itself was in direct danger. These five Republicans should not have had to be subpoenaed in order to reveal what they know, but they are seriously resisting.

Mr. McCarthy’s testimony in particular could reveal the then-President Donald Trump’s state of mind.  Also, whether he tried to use a mob on Jan. 6, 2021, to threaten Congress into upending his 2020 election loss. It is still also possible the Jan 6 committee still will probably turn up wrongdoing on the part of some of these subpoenaed lawmakers.

For these reasons, it would be unsurprising if they defy the subpoenas, which would mean the House would be forced to pass the matter on to the Justice Department. These GOP lawmakers might argue that they are protected under the Constitution’s “speech or debate” clause, which shields certain official actions.  But chances are very slim that this argument would be tested in court before the November election.  At which point, Republicans may retake the House and they would then be expected to end the Jan. 6 probe.

In other words, the subpoenas’ practical impact could be little more than a mild sting for Mr. McCarthy and the other subpoenaed lawmakers, and the establishment of a precedent that Republicans would probably use to then subpoena Democrats about less compelling matters down the road.

Still, it is hard to fault the committee for trying. The Jan. 6 committee is unique. It is not investigating some everyday act of political wrongdoing.  They are asked to investigate a direct assault on U.S. democracy.  Mr. McCarthy has at every turn, sought to protect Donald Trump, and other Republicans, from scrutiny for their roles in the Jan. 6 horror.  Mr. McCarthy’s lack of patriotism, and even having a spine, that led the committee to its decision to use subpoenas.  Though it is likely to be used by the GOP as a false and illegitimate justification to harass Democratic lawmakers in the future.

The Justice Department and the courts should move quickly if the House asks them to consider these subpoenas.  They should also move faster in cases that are already pending.  Former Trump adviser Stephen Bannon’s trial for defying a committee subpoena is not even scheduled to start until July.

This situation should be yet another reminder that U.S. democracy remains vulnerable to another attack as soon as 2024. Congress must update the 1887 Electoral Count Act, which prescribes how lawmakers tally presidential electoral votes.  This would curb the ability of Kevin McCarthy and his ilk in Congress to argue that its vague language permits them to overturn presidential election results they do not like.  A bipartisan group of senators led by Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.) has been working on reforming the act.

Their group plans to meet again later this month. But they must hurry, because as soon as January, Mr. McCarthy could be holding the speaker’s gavel.

Copyright G. Ater 2022