Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) appeared to admit in a Tuesday evening Fox News interview that he spoke to former president Trump on Jan. 6.
Fox News host Brett Baier had to force the answer out of Jordan, who at first deflected when asked if he spoke to Trump that day.
“I’ve talked to the former president umpteen times — thousands, countless times,” Jordan said.
Baier followed up: “But I mean on January 6, congressman.”
“Yes,” Jordan replied. “I mean — I’ve talked to the president so many — I can’t remember all the days I’ve talked to him, but I’ve certainly talked to the president.”
Jordan dodged a follow-up from Baier on what the two discussed.
Jordan also appeared to reference a call with then-president Trump during comments reported by the Washington Post in May.
“I think this commission is ridiculous, and why would they subpoena me? I didn’t do anything wrong — I talked to the president,” Jordan reportedly said at the time.
“I talk to the president all the time,” he added.
The admission puts Jordan in the camp of the Republicans who had direct contact with the insurrection’s main instigator on the day that it took place. Though it’s not clear what the two discussed, it means that Jordan could testify to Trump’s behavior on the day of the attack.
It further means that, like House Minority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), he may be in a position to provide evidence to congressional investigators.
The question of issuing subpoenas to House members who both spoke to Trump and are searching for sway over the investigation has already come up with respect to McCarthy, who spoke to Trump during the insurrection.
When McCarthy told Trump via phone on Jan. 6 that it was the president’s supporters and not Antifa that were storming the Capitol, Trump purportedly replied: “Well, Kevin, I guess these people are more upset about the election than you are.”
McCarthy proposed Jordan as one of Republican picks for the House Select Committee to investigate the attack, but Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) shot Jordan down from participating last week.
At the panel’s first public hearing on Tuesday, the committee kept its focus trained on the stories and trauma of four police officers who defended the Capitol that day. The event ended with all four of the officers demanding that the panel probe Trump’s role — as one put it, police arrest both the hitman and the person who called the hit when a contract killing occurs.
Members of the committee also signaled that they are interested in probing the full scope of the attack — including Trump’s role.
“We must also know what happened every minute of that day in the White House: every phone call and conversation, every meeting leading up to, during and after the attack,” Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) said at the hearing.
