Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY), the vice chairman of the House Select Committee investigating the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol made it clear Sunday that the panel is not going to wait around for Ginni Thomas, the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, to make up her mind about providing testimony, and is ready to subpoena her.
During an appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Cheney was asked by host Jake Tapper:
“She was writing to them about efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, not to mention her correspondence with Arizona lawmakers pushing fake electors. Is your committee planning on talking to her?”
Cheney replied:
“We are. The committee is engaged with her counsel and hope she will agree to come in voluntarily. The committee is prepared to contemplate a subpoena if she does not.
“I hope it doesn’t get to that and I hope she comes voluntarily,” she continued. “We’ve spoken with numbers of people who are similarly situated in terms of the discussions that she was having as you mentioned. It’s very important for us to speak with her and, as I said, I hope she’ll agree to do so voluntarily — I’m sure we’ll contemplate a subpoena if she won’t.”
In June, Thomas said she would be glad to appear before the House Select Committee, remarking:
“I can’t wait to clear up misconceptions. I look forward to talking to them.”
Two weeks later, however, everything changed, with her attorney asking for “better justification” before Ms. Thomas would appear, NBC News reported at the time:
In an eight-page letter to the committee, obtained Wednesday by NBC News, Ginni Thomas’ lawyer, Mark R. Paoletta, argued that he has not seen any reason for her to testify and asked the panel to provide a “better justification” for his client’s testimony.
“Mrs. Thomas is eager to clear her name and is willing to appear before the Committee to do so,” he wrote in the letter, dated Tuesday. “However, based on my understanding of the communications that spurred the Committee’s request, I do not understand the need to speak with Mrs. Thomas. Before I can recommend that she meet with you, I am asking the Committee to provide a better justification for why Mrs. Thomas’s testimony is relevant to the Committee’s legislative purpose.”
Thomas had better make up her mind or she’s going to be hit with a subpoena. If she defies that, she’ll be facing prison time, just like former Trump administration official Steve Bannon, who was found guilty on two counts of contempt of Congress earlier this week. He is awaiting sentencing and could get up to two years in federal prison.
Featured Image: NBC News
