Jan. 6 panel subpoenas Phil Waldron, who briefed members on election fraud theories
Waldron required to produce records by Jan. 10 and testify Jan. 17.
Phil Waldron, who briefed members of Congress on election fraud theories and helped circulate a PowerPoint plan toward that end, was subpoenaed by the Jan. 6 select committee on Thursday.
He is required to produce records by Jan. 10 and testify before the panel investigating the Capitol attack on Jan. 17. Waldron, a retired Army colonel and denier of the 2020 presidential election results, visited the White House multiple times following the election and spoke to Mark Meadows, the former chief of staff for then-President Donald Trump, “maybe eight to 10 times,” the committee said in a statement announcing the subpoena.
The panel noted Waldron participated in meetings at the Willard Hotel before the insurrection to collect purported evidence of election fraud, citing The Washington Post.
Waldron’s subpoena comes days after the House voted to hold Meadows in criminal contempt of Congress for not appearing for his deposition and other instances of noncompliance with a select panel subpoena. The Justice Department will decide whether to pursue an indictment, but a conviction would not force Meadows to provide testimony sought by the panel.
Meadows did, however, produce thousands of documents, including a Jan. 5, 2021, email regarding the PowerPoint briefing, exceeding 30 pages and called “Election Fraud, Foreign Interference & Options for 6 JAN” to be provided “on the hill.”
The panel noted Waldron publicly acknowledged contributing to a PowerPoint presentation that was given or described to GOP members on Jan. 5.
“Mr. Waldron reportedly played a role in promoting claims of election fraud and circulating potential strategies for challenging results of the 2020 election,” Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said in a statement.
“He was also apparently in communication with officials in the Trump White House and in Congress discussing his theories in the weeks leading up to the January 6th attack. The document he reportedly provided to Administration officials and Members of Congress is an alarming blueprint for overturning a nationwide election. The Select Committee needs to hear from him about all these activities,” Thompson added.
