Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH).
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- The January 6 commitee criticized Rep. Jim Jordan for refusing to voluntarily cooperate with its probe.
- “It now appears that the Trump team has persuaded him to try to hide the facts,” a committee spokesperson said of Jordan.
- Jordan on Sunday sent a letter to the committee declining its request for information.
The House select committee investigating the Capitol riot on January 6 criticized Rep. Jim Jordan on Monday for refusing to voluntarily cooperate with the probe.
A spokesperson for the congressional panel said in a statement that “Jordan has previously said that he would cooperate with the committee’s investigation, but it now appears that the Trump team has persuaded him to try to hide the facts and circumstances of January 6th.”
The statement comes after Jordan refused to provide the committee with further information about his communications with then-President Donald Trump on the day of the riot.
Jordan accused the panel of pursuing a partisan witch hunt and said its request for information was “unprecedented” and “inappropriate.”
“This request is far outside the bounds of any legitimate inquiry, violates core Constitutional principles, and would serve to further erode legislative norms,” the Ohio Republican on Sunday wrote in a letter to committee chair Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi.
In a December 22 letter, Thompson asked Jordan to meet with the committee to discuss any communications he had with Trump on January 6 and any information he had leading up to the day.
Jordan has previously acknowledged that he spoke with Trump on January 6, but hasn’t revealed the details of their conversation.
“Mr. Jordan’s letter fails to address the principal bases for the Select Committee’s request for a meeting, including that he worked directly with President Trump and the Trump legal team to attempt to overturn the lawful results of the 2020 presidential election,” a committee spokesperson said in a statement. “Mr. Jordan has admitted that he spoke directly to President Trump on January 6th and is thus a material witness.”
The spokesperson added that the committee “will respond to this letter in more detail in the coming days and will consider appropriate next steps.”
Jordan’s refusal to voluntarily cooperate with the investigation comes after he said on multiple occasions that he has “nothing to hide” from the January 6 committee.
Jordan’s office did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.
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