Representative Adam Schiff (D-CA) said Thursday on MSNBC’s “All In” that the Justice Department should be looking “long and hard” at former President Donald Trump’s lawyers and aides over possible charges of suborning perjury once the January 6 House Select Committee releases their report and transcripts of testimony.
Referencing Ben Williamson, a top aide to Mark Meadows, anchor Ali Velshi said, “One of the things that came out as well in the Cassidy Hutchinson transcripts is Ben Williamson, who’s the person who called Cassidy Hutchinson before her second interview with the committee and said, ‘Mark knows you are loyal. You will protect him and the boss.’ Liz Cheney, your colleague on the committee, wanted to go down that road not just because those are unusual things to say, but she wanted to explore to what degree witnesses were subject to something that feels a little bit like intimidation possibly.”
Schiff said, “I think this has been a big concern of ours. Some of these witnesses have the same council, paid for by sources they weren’t ready to disclose to the witnesses. And if people are told, ‘Hey, the boss is going to be watching this. He’s going to read the transcripts. He will know what you have to say. You are a team player.’ Things like that are absolutely designed to influence testimony. Now whether that is a prosecutable offense, you know, I think some of the statements that you related to us earlier where the witnesses said, hey, I just said things I don’t recall things, I do recall things, and the attorney says that’s just fine. I agree. That crosses the line. The Justice Department is going to have to look long and hard at that and decide whether they believe they can prove an effort to suborn perjury or illicit a false statement beyond a reasonable doubt.”
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