Trump ‘absolutely’ tampering with witnesses by dangling pardons, Capitol riot committee member says

‘I think the question is more for my colleagues on the other side of the aisle – where are they? Do they support this? When is enough enough?’

California Democratic Representative Pete Aguilar has said that former President Donald Trump is “absolutely” tampering with witnesses as he dangles possible pardons if he gets elected again in 2024.

Mr Trump said at a rally in Texas over the weekend that “if I run and if I win” in 2024, “we will treat those people from January 6 fairly. We will treat them fairly. And if it requires pardons, we will give them pardons because they are being treated so unfairly”.

Mr Aguilar, a member of the House Select Committee investigating 6 January, was asked by CNN if Mr Trump was witness tampering by offering pardons to the rioters who laid siege to the Capitol.

“Absolutely,” he said. “And I think the question is more for my colleagues on the other side of the aisle – where are they? Do they support this? When is enough enough?”

The panel investigating the insurrection is speaking to former members of the Trump administration and the committee is also obtaining documents connected to the attack on Congress.

Speaking to Newsmax on Tuesday, Mr Trump again said he would pardon rioters. “I would absolutely give them a pardon if things don’t work out fairly,” he said.

Some Republicans have pushed back against the suggestion that rioters should be pardoned, including South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.

Robert Jenkins, a lawyer who represents several people charged with crimes in relation to 6 January, has said that Mr Trump’s statements about pardons for rioters could alter his clients’ willingness to cooperate with the authorities.

While Mr Jenkins said that Mr Trump is “putting his fingers on the scales”, he said he was unsure if the actions of the former president amounted to witness tampering.

“This is not a situation where I think he’s offering something of value to someone who is necessarily a witness but a potential defendant or an actual defendant,” Mr Jenkins told CNN. “So, I don’t think this would qualify as witness tampering. But he is certainly putting his fingers on the scales. I’ll say that.”

Mr Aguilar told the network that the panel is “trying to be deliberate and thoughtful” when requesting that former Vice President Mike Pence testify before the committee.

“We’re still taking witness testimony ... but we are making significant progress with or without that testimony,” he said. “We’re not rushing to any decisions here. We are being respectful of the office. We’re trying to get testimony from individuals who were around the former vice president.”

“And we are still processing a lot of documents that the archives has sent. And obviously, in any interview we want to do, we want to be prepared. And that means we have to process the documents and get prepared for that witness,” Mr Aguilar added.

The Select Committee has spoken with officials from Mr Pence’s office. CNN reported that Pence aide Greg Jacobs was spotted on Tuesday leaving a room in the Capitol that the panel uses to speak to witnesses. It was later confirmed that Mr Jacobs had been scheduled to speak to the committee on Tuesday.

Mr Pence’s former Chief of Staff, Marc Short, was interviewed by the committee last week.

So far, the Department of Justice has charged more than 700 people with crimes in relation to the Capitol riot.