The House Jan. 6 committee slapped Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos with a subpoena for testimony about a July call the Republican state lawmaker had with former President Donald Trump.
Vos quickly fired back, filing an emergency lawsuit to quash the subpoena, which he contends is “irrelevant” to the panel’s inquiry and comes amid the homestretch of the midterm elections. The committee canceled the Monday deadline for deposition after communication with his attorneys but is still pursuing the subpoena, which was issued over the weekend, sources told Politico.
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“In short, the Committee is demanding Speaker Vos appear for a deposition to answer questions irrelevant to the Committee’s investigation, with virtually no notice, in the closing days of his reelection campaign, merely because of the Committee’s public relations scheme,” Vos’s lawyers wrote in the emergency filing.
Investigators are keen on obtaining testimony and documents from Vos about a call with Trump last July after the state Supreme Court “ruled drop-off boxes for absentee ballots outside of election offices could not be used in future elections,” according to his filing.
Trump prodded him to take additional actions, namely decertify the 2020 election — something Vos refused to do, arguing it was unconstitutional, the Wisconsin Republican recounted in an interview with WISN over the summer.
Shortly after the call, Trump took to his Truth Social platform to back Vos’s primary opponent Adam Steen, berating Vos for allowing the Democrats to “get away with ‘murder.'” Despite Trump’s backing, Vos narrowly bested Steen in August.
Although reports of the call between Vos and Trump have been circulating publicly for months, the committee opted to subpoena him on Sept. 24 and initially gave him a deadline of Sept. 26 to comply, Vos’s lawyers wrote in the filing. He is seeking a judgment to quash the subpoena and get reimbursement for legal fees associated with his challenge.
Beyond lawmakers only giving him “less than 48 hours notice” and requesting information about a topic “irrelevant to the Committee’s investigation,” Vos’s legal team also referenced the debate clause, which has been used by others, such as Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), in (usually failed) bids to challenge subpoenas from other investigations into the 2020 election.
“Members of Congress have state legislatures to thank for bringing legislative immunity to this country and providing the basis for the federal Speech or Debate Clause,” the filing added. “Under the federal common law, this Court should ensure that they recognize those same protections for state legislators like Speaker Vos.”
Graham referenced the debate clause in his challenge to a Fulton County subpoena for an inquiry into the 2020 election. The debate clause in the Constitution shields legislators from some types of law enforcement activity when engaging in legislative duties.
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The Washington Examiner reached out to a Jan. 6 committee representative for comment. The panel is slated to hold a public hearing on Wednesday.
