Jan. 6 Committee Seeks Interview With Kevin McCarthy
The New York Times
The panel said it was interested in conversations the top House Republican had with then-President Donald J. Trump on the day of the riot and afterward.
WASHINGTON — The House committee scrutinizing the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol on Wednesday formally requested an interview with Representative Kevin McCarthy, taking the unusual step of calling the minority leader, who was in close contact with former President Donald J. Trump before, during and after the violence and has fought to shut down any investigation of the events.
The public request sent a clear message that the committee’s investigators, including two former U.S. attorneys, are willing to pursue even the highest-ranking figures on Capitol Hill as they seek information about Mr. Trump’s mind-set as the violence unfolded, which a federal judge has suggested will be pivotal to determining whether Mr. Trump can face any liability for the day’s mayhem.
It set up a politically charged showdown between House Democrats investigating the assault and Mr. McCarthy, the California Republican who is on track to become the speaker of the House if Republicans retake the chamber in November. And it suggested that investigators believe that Mr. McCarthy, who has acknowledged that he spoke by telephone with Mr. Trump while rioters stormed the Capitol, may also have been involved in conversations afterward about the then-president’s culpability in the assault and what should be done to address it.
