The U.S. House of Representatives select committee on January 6 formally withdrew its subpoena of Donald Trump, prompting the former president to declare a small victory over the adversarial panel as it concludes its work with the end of the current Congress.
“In light of the imminent end of our investigation, the Select Committee can no longer pursue the specific information covered by the subpoena,” wrote committee chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) in a letter to Trump’s attorneys.
“Therefore, through this letter, I hereby formally withdraw the subpoena issued to former President Trump and notify you that he is no longer obligated to comply or produce records in response to said subpoena,” Thompson wrote.
In late October, the committee issued a formal subpoena to Trump demanding that he sit for a deposition under oath and provide numerous documents.
At the time, the select committee wrote in its subpoena letter to Trump, “As demonstrated in our hearings, we have assembled overwhelming evidence, including from dozens of your former appointees and staff, that you personally orchestrated and oversaw a multi-part effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election and to obstruct the peaceful transition of power.”
Trump’s legal team highly scrutinized the public release of the subpoena.
David Warrington, one of the former president’s attorneys, commented on the decision to release the letter: “We understand that, once again, flouting norms and appropriate and customary process, the Committee has publicly released a copy of its subpoena. As with any similar matter, we will review and analyze it and will respond as appropriate to this unprecedented action.”
Ultimately, Trump and his attorneys responded by suing the select committee in an effort to block the enforcement of the subpoena.
With the committee’s jurisdiction set to expire at the end of the current Congress and effectively no likelihood of it being renewed by incoming Republican leadership, the bid to delay through litigation appears successful.
Trump posted on Truth Social in response to the news, “Was just advised that the Unselect Committee of political Thugs has withdrawn the Subpoena of me concerning the January 6 Protest of the CROOKED 2020 Presidential Election.”
He continued, “They probably did so because they knew I did nothing wrong, or they were about to lose in Court. Perhaps the FBI’s involvement in RIGGING the Election played into their decision. In any event, the Subpoena is DEAD!”
Recently, the select committee formally referred the former president to the U.S. Department of Justice for potential criminal prosecution on four separate charges.
While the committee’s referral carries no legal weight, a Department of Justice special prosecutor was recently named to investigate Trump and the events of January 6.