Washington—Chairman Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS) today announced that the Select Committee is requesting that Ivanka Trump provide information for the committee’s investigation into the violence of January 6th and its causes. In a letter to Ms. Trump seeking a voluntary interview with the committee, Chairman Thompson underscored evidence obtained by the Select Committee that Ms. Trump was in direct contact with the former President at key moments on January 6th and that she may have information relevant to other matters critical to the Select Committee’s investigation.
Ms. Trump apparently has direct knowledge of the former President’s attempt to persuade Vice President Pence to take action to stop the counting of electoral votes. Chairman Thompson wrote, “As January 6th approached, President Trump attempted on multiple occasions to persuade Vice President Pence to participate in his plan. One of the President’s discussions with the Vice President occurred by phone on the morning of January 6th. You were present in the Oval Office and observed at least one side of that telephone conversation.”
The Select Committee is also seeking information from Ms. Trump about concerns in the office of the White House Counsel, from Members of Congress, and among the Vice President’s staff about plans to pressure Vice President Pence to overturn the election. “[T]he Committee would like to discuss any other conversations you may have witnessed or participated in regarding the President’s plan to obstruct or impede the counting of electoral votes,” wrote Chairman Thompson.
Ms. Trump’s role and actions on January 6th as the riot was underway at the Capitol are also a key focus for the Select Committee. Chairman Thompson wrote, “Testimony obtained by the Committee indicates that members of the White House staff requested your assistance on multiple occasions to intervene in an attempt to persuade President Trump to address the ongoing lawlessness and violence on Capitol Hill.”
Given Ms. Trump’s presence in the White House on January 6th, the Select Committee is seeking her knowledge about the former President’s actions related to the deployment of the National Guard to respond to the violence. “The Committee is aware that certain White House staff devoted time during the violent riot to rebutting questions regarding whether the President was attempting to hold up deployment of the guard[…]. But the Committee has identified no evidence that President Trump issued any order, or took any other action, to deploy the guard that day. Nor does it appear that President Trump made any calls at all to the Department of Justice or any other law enforcement agency to request deployment of their personnel to the Capitol,” wrote Chairman Thompson.
The Select Committee believes that Ms. Trump may have knowledge about efforts to advance unsupported claims about the 2020 election in the aftermath of the January 6th riot. Chairman Thompson wrote, “The Committee has information suggesting that White House staff and others were attempting to persuade President Trump to halt his statements regarding a ‘stolen election’ and were working directly with other supporters outside the White House in an effort to persuade President Trump to do so.”