Jan. 6 panel seeks testimony from Newt Gingrich about 2020 election claims

The Jan. 6 committee is requesting testimony from former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, an ally of former President Donald Trump, over his involvement in Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election, including on the day of the riot.

In a letter sent Thursday, the committee specifically said it wants to ask Gingrich about emails it said it obtained between him and former Trump senior advisers, including Jared Kushner and Jason Miller, where the former GOP speaker gave input about television ads that “repeated and relied upon false claims about fraud in the 2020 election.”

“These advertising efforts were not designed to encourage voting for a particular candidate. Instead, these efforts attempted to cast doubt on the outcome of the election after voting had already taken place,” Jan. 6 Coommittee Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., wrote to Gingrich. 

“They encouraged members of the public to contact their state officials and pressure them to challenge and overturn the results of the election. To that end, these advertisements were intentionally aired in the days leading up to December 14, 2020, the day electors from each state met to cast their votes for president and vice president.

Thompson said that on Jan. 6, 2021, Gingrich “continued to push efforts to overturn the election results.” 

The chairman said Gingrich emailed Trump’s then-chief of staff, Mark Meadows, at 10:42 p.m. ET that day — after the Capitol had been cleared of rioters and lawmakers had returned to the building to certify the election results — and asked: “‘[a]re there letters from state legislators about decertifying electors[?]”

“Accordingly, you appear to have been involved with President Trump’s efforts to stop the certification of the election results, even after the attack on the Capitol,” Thompson said.

“We would like to interview you about these and other communications and speak with you about your efforts to advise President Trump and his campaign.”

The panel said it would like Gingrich to appear for a “voluntary” interview the week of Sept. 19.