Doug Mastriano, the extreme-right gubernatorial nominee for Pennsylvania, has waffled on his cooperation with the Jan. 6 committee historically. Now, as the midterm election fast approaches in his home state, Mastriano is moving full bore to avoid insurrection investigators and has sued them—as well as Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.
Mastriano, through his attorney Timothy Parlatore, is making the narrow legal argument that he cannot be forced to sit for deposition because the very composition of the Jan. 6 committee itself is invalid.
Mastriano is careful to couch in his complaint that he is not arguing against the legitimacy of the committee as a whole. Many Trump White House officials and allies have tried this method, and all thus far have failed.
This, instead, according to the lawsuit, is focused on receiving a definitive answer on the question of whether depositions can be compelled by the committee when its membership does not include a pick from the ranking opposing party, i.e. the committee picks selected by House Minority Leader and Trump darling Kevin McCarthy.
McCarthy had a chance to appoint members, and when some of his picks were rejected, instead of negotiating, he gave up altogether on the prospect.
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The 21-page lawsuit is also littered with a series of digs at the committee’s work and its members, with Mastriano arguing that Republican Rep. Liz Cheney’s nomination to serve as the committee’s vice chair is not equivalent to being picked by the ranking minority.
“Although ideologically aligned with the Democratic Caucus, Rep. Cheney is still nominally a member of the Republican Conference of the House of Representatives and is not officially a member of the current majority party,” the lawsuit states.
Mastriano v Pelosi Thompson Et Al Jan 6 Cmte by Daily Kos on Scribd
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“As Rep. Cheney is outspoken in her decision to follow the priorities of the Democratic Caucus, rather than the Republican Caucus, she clearly is not following Rule 14(d)(1). The lack of discipline by the Republican Conference indicates that neither she, nor the rest of the Republican Conference, consider her to be a ‘Ranking Minority Member’ as that term is defined. Instead, a ‘Vice Chair’ title makes her more accountable to the Democratic Caucus,” Parlatore wrote.
Mastriano first received a subpoena from Jan. 6 investigators this February.
He began turning documents over in May, submitting records tied to his campaign’s purchase of charter buses headed to Washington on Jan. 6. His campaign sold more than 100 tickets to the ‘Stop the Steal’ protest at the Ellipse that ultimately turned into a violent siege of the U.S. Capitol.
The committee was also interested to learn more from Mastriano about the supportive role he played in Trump’s fake elector scheme.
When he was in talks with the probe earlier this year, Mastriano said he would sit for an interview only if his attorney could tape it and have control over the recording.
He argued the committee might manipulate the footage, a common gripe among those allies of the former president who have refused to more freely engage with the committee.
Though there was a remote video conference that took place between Mastriano and the committee early last month, talks petered out. Parlatore said he and Mastriano left a meeting with the committee on Aug. 9 when investigators started asking questions before being sworn in.
During a meeting with the committee, Parlatore said too that they questioned whether chair Bennie Thompson had properly issued the subpoenas because he did not use a wet signature, but rather signed off using an autopen, or an electronic one.
As he grasps for a way out of testifying, Mastriano argues that any video release by the committee of his testimony—which he claims would be manipulated—would potentially “influence the results of primary elections.”
If he wins declaratory relief from the judge, Mastriano also wants the committee to pay for his attorney fees.
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