The House committee investigating the Jan.6 attack on Capitol Hill asked the representative. Scott perryScott Gordon PerryHouse Democrats pass Islamophobia bill in support of Omar House Republican announces positive COVID-19 test hours after handling indoor debate (R-Pa.) To meet the committee and provide information, a remarkable request that does not go so far as to subpoena a sitting legislator.

The move follows earlier reports that Perry, the new chairman of the far-right Freedom Caucus, was a central figure in the former President TrumpDonald Trump Chile elects millennial who wants to tax the rich as new president On the day democracy nearly died, Trump said he would not impose a boycott of the Beijing Olympics MOREefforts to pressure the Justice Department to act on its baseless allegations of electoral fraud. This includes the president’s introduction to Jeffrey Clark, a mid-level Justice Department employee Trump has previously considered installing as attorney general.

Perry’s role in Trump’s lobbying campaign for the Justice Department came to light following a Senate Judiciary Committee inquiry into Trump’s plans to launch Acting Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen, putting Clark in a best position to advance polling inquiries in states where Trump has lost. But upheaval was stalled when several high-level Justice Department figures threatened to resign during a White House meeting on January 3.

Perry also contacted senior Justice Department officials, including sending “a series of documents summarizing numerous allegations of electoral fraud in Pennsylvania” on December 27.

Lawmakers also led efforts to challenge the certification of Pennsylvania election results shortly after midnight, once the Capitol reopened in the wake of the attack.

The letter requests Perry’s “voluntary cooperation” and that he hand over all of his communications with Trump, Trump’s legal team, and anything January 6 or his planning.

“We have received evidence from several witnesses that you played an important role in the effort to install Mr. Clark as Acting Attorney General. Acting Attorney General Rosen and Acting Deputy Attorney General Donoghue provided evidence regarding these issues, and we have received evidence that other people who worked with Mr. Clark were aware of these plans, ”he said. declared the representative. Bennie thompsonBennie Gordon Thompson What We Learned From Meadows Documents January 6 Truth Revealed: Responsibility Will Rest With Courts (D-Miss.), The panel chair, wrote in a letter to Perry.

“We also know that you had several text messages and other communications with President Trump‘s former chief of staff regarding Mr. Clark – and we also have evidence that during that time you sent communications to the former chief of staff using the Encrypted Signal application. Thompson wrote.

“Mr. Clark has informed us that he plans to invoke his 5th Amendment right against self-incrimination in anticipation of a testimony to be conducted by the committee,” Thompson added. “When Mr. Clark decided to invoke his 5th Amendment rights, he understood that we were planning to ask about his interactions with you, among a host of other topics.”

The January 6 committee, created by the President Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiChris Christie Tries Again Manchin Says He Won’t Vote Build Back Better: ‘It’s a No’ This Issue Will Ensure Democratic Erasure In 2022 MORE (D-Calif.) And led by President Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), Referred to congressional lawmakers in his investigation.

This month, the special panel made public the contents of text messages sent on January 6 by a handful of House lawmakers, including the Representative. Jim jordanJames (Jim) Daniel Jordan What We Learned From The Meadows Documents The January 6 Truth Is Emerging – The Responsibility Will Fall To The Courts The Clear And Present Danger Of Jim Jordan & Co. MORE (R-Ohio), at Marc des meadowsMark Meadows The Day Democracy Almost Died What We Learned From The Meadows Documents The January 6 Truth Is Revealed: The Responsibility Will Fall To The Courts MORE, who served as Trump’s White House chief of staff. Some Democrats outside the committee have publicly said they saw GOP lawmakers touring Trump supporters in the days leading up to the attack, even though tours were banned due to the pandemic.

But Monday’s letter to Perry marked the first time the committee had engaged directly with a sitting U.S. lawmaker. Last month, Perry was elected the next chairman of the Freedom Caucus, a group of conservative thugs previously led by Jordan and Meadows who closely aligned with Trump during his presidency. Perry, a retired Pennsylvania National Guard Brigadier General, is an Iraq War veteran.

“The select committee has immense respect for the prerogatives of Congress and the privacy of its members. At the same time, we have a solemn responsibility to thoroughly investigate all of these facts and circumstances, ”Thompson wrote.

Perry’s office did not immediately respond to the request for comment.

Trump has repeatedly encountered resistance in his efforts to get the Justice Department to investigate his baseless allegations of electoral fraud, with officials repeatedly failing to follow up on the allegations and plots forwarded by Meadows.

The request to Perry shows how much the committee focused on Trump’s actions at the DOJ, which culminated with a meeting at the White House on January 3 in which the president was faced with the resignation of officials from the DOJ and censorship of its own staff. Then White House Attorney Pat Cipollone called Clark’s plan to send letters to Georgia and other states suggesting a delay in certifying votes as a “murder-suicide pact.”

The committee has previously sat with Rosen and Donoghue, who gave voluntary talks to the committee. Clark, meanwhile, after a threat of contempt of Congress, is expected to meet with the committee to plead the fifth, a nod to the potential for criminal activity in the Justice Department’s efforts.

Perry reached out to Donoghue at Trump’s request, just hours after the former president asked for Donoghue’s number so he could share it with lawmakers.

According to the Senate Judiciary’s report, Perry told Donoghue “that the DOJ did not do his job with regard to the elections” and claimed that there were about 205,000 votes more than voters in state and that 4,000 voters have voted more than once.

Perry added something to the effect of, “I think Jeff Clark is awesome. I really like this guy. He’s the kind of guy who could really step in there and do something about it, ”the report said.

Scott Wong contributed to this article, which was updated at 7:06 p.m.