A member of the House Select Committee on the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection said Wednesday that if former members of the Trump administration refuse to obey subpoenas issued by the committee, U.S. Marshals could be called to arrest anyone who is accused of obstructing a congressional investigation.
Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-FL) was a guest on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” and she made it clear that the committee would indeed play hardball with anyone who flouts a subpoena, suggesting that both fines and time in jail are the penalties for anyone who doesn’t comply:
“I want to know how much planning was involved, who was involved in the planning, who funded it, how they — what their intent was when they came into that day, and then what they knew as that day unfolded and the safety and security of people like the vice president and members of Congress were at risk, [and] what they did, either to respond or not respond on that occasion.”
And that’s when Murphy brought up the possibility of asking the U.S. Marshals Service to arrest anyone who remains recalcitrant:
“We have engaged with a wide variety of law enforcement offices, including the U.S. Marshals, in order to issue the subpoenas. We will use everything, as you said, with all due respect, we will use all of the agencies and all of the tools at our disposal to issue the subpoenas and enforce them.”
If there are no consequence for ignoring a subpoena, then what’s the used in issuing one in the first place? The committee has every right to the documents and testimony from people such as Steve Bannon, former White House Chief of Staff Mark Murphy, and others who allegedly played a role in the horror of the Capitol riots.
It’s time to take off the gloves and make sure we get to the bottom of who did what in an attempt to overturn the 2020 election. If that means putting people in jail, then so be it.
Featured Image Via NBC News
