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An aide working for House Speaker Mike Johnson stepped in last June to advise Republicans against issuing a subpoena for former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson for fear that it might expose sexual texts lawmakers sent her, according to The Washington Post.
The subpoena was intended to be a part of House Republicans’ own investigation into the January 6, 2021, attack on Congress.
Johnson brought the investigation back to life this week as President Donald Trump and his allies in Congress seek revenge against perceived political enemies, such as those who investigated the attack on the Capitol.
Hutchinson gained national fame after testifying in a 2022 hearing during which she claimed Trump wanted an armed mob to take to the Capitol on Jan 6, and that he wanted to go to the Congressional complex himself.
Johnson, a Republican of Louisiana, and his top aides told Republican Rep. Barry Loudermilk of Georgia and his staff that subpoenaing Hutchinson and asking her to testify under oath could possibly embarrass the Trump White House as it would hand her an opportunity to tell her story once again, two people at the meeting told The Post.
Loudermilk had suggested in public that a subpoena be issued for Hutchinson. Before the meeting, an aide to Johnson told Loudermilk’s aides that several colleagues had shared concerns that “sexual texts from members who were trying to engage in sexual favors” with Hutchinson could be shared publically, correspondence from the time reveals, according to the paper.
An email seen by the outlet also showed that a Johnson staffer told Loudermilk’s aides that Hutchinson may “potentially reveal embarrassing information.”
Loudermilk led a Republican investigation into the Jan 6 attack in the last Congress, including the probe of the attack headed by Democratic Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson and then-Wyoming Republican Rep. Liz Cheney.
Johnson appointed Loudermilk to lead a new select subcommittee on Wednesday intended to continue the Republican investigation.
Loudermilk was reportedly considering subpoenaing Hutchinson for testimony and electronic communications because he thought she could provide new information, two people involved in the investigation told The Post. The information he sought was about Cheney, who had organized Hutchinson’s testimony.
The paper did not review the reportedly sexual texts and didn’t identify the senders or whether Hutchinson responded.
Hutchinson’s attorney, Bill Jordan, told The Post that she cooperated voluntarily with the investigation, criticizing the interim report issued by Loudermilk in December, which stated that Cheney had been “secretly communicating with Hutchinson without Hutchinson’s attorney’s knowledge.”
“Ms. Hutchinson has testified truthfully and stands behind every word despite the efforts of men in powerful positions to attack her,” Jordan told The Post.
Last month, Cheney said in a statement that Loudermilk’s report was a “malicious and cowardly assault on the truth.”
Loudermilk told reporters on Monday that Trump has asked him to “continue the investigation and continue to expose the truth.”
“I know President Trump is 100 percent behind it,” he added.
In one of his final acts in office, former President Joe Biden issued preemptive pardons for Cheney, the other members of the committee, and some staff to protect them from reprisals from the incoming Trump administration. Hutchinson didn’t receive a pardon.