The Congressional committee investigating the attempted coup on Jan. 6 is summoning the overdressed dirty trickster Roger Stone and far-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones along with others who helped plan and finance the rallies that preceded the attack on the Capitol.
Stone, one of several Trump confidants to be pardoned by the former president, was set to speak at rallies on both Jan. 5 and Jan. 6 and reportedly used members of the far-right militia group the Oath Keepers as personal security that day.
Jones, a right-wing conspiracy theorist, also spoke at both rallies and facilitated a donation to provide what he described as “80 percent” of the funding for the rally near the White House on Jan. 6.
At the rally on the Ellipse, former President Donald Trump urged Vice President Mike Pence not to certify the results of the 2020 presidential election. He also urged his supporters to “fight like hell. And if you don’t fight like hell, you’re not going to have a country anymore.”
“The Select Committee is seeking information about the rallies and subsequent march to the Capitol that escalated into a violent mob attacking the Capitol and threatening our democracy,” said Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.).
At the rally on the Ellipse, former President Donald Trump urged Vice President Mike Pence not to certify the results of the 2020 presidential election. He also urged his supporters to “fight like hell. And if you don’t fight like hell, you’re not going to have a country anymore.”
“We need to know who organized, planned, paid for, and received funds related to those events, as well as what communications organizers had with officials in the White House and Congress,” said Thompson.
“We believe the witnesses we subpoenaed today have relevant information and we expect them to cooperate fully with our effort to get answers for the American people about the violence of January 6th,” Thompson said.
Others subpoenaed Monday are Dustin Stockton and his fiancee Jennifer Lawrence, who both helped organize the rally held on the Ellipse ahead of the march toward the Capitol, noting that Stockton sought to warn the White House about the potential danger that could stem from the attack.
The committee also subpoenaed Taylor Budowich, who serves as a spokesman for Trump and solicited some $200,000 in funding to promote the rally and encourage attendance.
The letter says he reportedly spoke at rallies on Jan. 5 at the Supreme Court “held by a group affiliated with the Three Percenters” and another at Freedom Plaza organized by the Eighty Percent Coalition, which described itself as dedicated to eradicating socialist policies.
He was also scheduled to speak at the rally on Jan. 6 that served as the springboard for the march to the Capitol.
“Before traveling to Washington, you promoted your appearance at an upcoming Stop the Steal event and solicited donations from supporters to pay for security by directing them to stopthesteal.com,” the subpoena states.
“You have stated that you were ‘invited to lead a march to the Capitol’ from the Ellipse rally on Jan. 6, but did not end up doing so,” it added.
The subpoena goes on to note that Stone’s security detail did make it to the Capitol, with several of his team reportedly involved in the attack, including “at least one of whom has been indicted.”
The committee has already subpoenaed Ali Alexander, a Stop the Steal organizer.
Stone was pardoned by Trump the day before he was supposed to report to jail for witness tampering and obstruction of justice charges related to the investigation into the Trump campaign’s awareness of Russian efforts to aid it.
The House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 riot is subpoenaing Trump ally Roger Stone and far-right radio host Alex Jones along with others who helped plan and finance the rallies that preceded the attack on the Capitol.
Stone, one of several Trump confidants to be pardoned by the former president, was set to speak at rallies on both Jan. 5 and Jan. 6 and reportedly used members of the far-right militia group the Oath Keepers as personal security that day.
“I have not yet been served and have not seen the details of what I may be asked to provide or what information they want from me,” said Stone. “I have said time and time again that I had no advance knowledge of the events that took place at the Capitol on that day. Any statement, claim, insinuation, or report alleging, or even implication, that I had any involvement in or knowledge, whether advance or contemporaneous, about the commission of any unlawful acts by any person or group in or around the U.S. Capitol or anywhere in Washington, D.C. on January 6, 2021, is categorically false.”
Jones, who was recently found liable in a defamation case brought by families of the victims of the Sandy Hook massacre, sought to secure funding for the rallies.
The subpoena notes he connected rally organizers with Julie Fancelli, heiress of the Publix supermarket chain, to provide financial backing for the gathering on the Ellipse.
It also notes his involvement with Alexander, the Stop the Steal organizer, saying that while Jones was “denied a speaking slot” at the Jan. 6 rally, he attended the event and helped direct rallygoers to a location on the Capitol grounds where Alexander had secured a permit.
Like Stone, he also spoke at the Jan. 5 rally organized by the Eighty Percent Coalition, something the subpoena says was done “at the request of President Trump.”
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