WASHINGTON (AP) – The House panel investigating the Jan.6 U.S. Capitol uprising on Wednesday requested an interview and information from Republican Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio, the second time this week the committee has publicly sought to interview a sitting member of Congress.

In a letter to Jordan, Mississippi Representative Bennie Thompson, Democratic panel chairman, said the panel wanted lawmakers to provide information for its investigation into its communications with then-President Donald Trump on the 6th. January and Trump’s efforts to challenge the result. of the 2020 elections.

“We understand that you had at least one and possibly multiple communications with President Trump on January 6,” the letter read. “We would like to discuss each of these communications with you in detail. “

The request is the second of the nine-member panel this week and kicks off a new phase for the committee’s lawmakers, who have so far resisted pursuing one of their own as they investigate the supporter insurgency and his efforts to overturn the elections. .

Jordan remains one of Trump’s closest allies in Congress and a staunch supporter of the former president’s false claims about voter fraud. Lawmakers recently raised the allegations again during an October hearing on a motion to convict former White House chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon for refusing to comply with a subpoena from the Congress.

At that same hearing, Jordan again admitted to speaking with Trump on the day of the attack.

“Of course I spoke to the chairman,” Jordan told members of the rules committee, responding to questions from panel chairman, Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.). “I spoke to him that day. I have been clear on this. I don’t remember the number of times, but it’s not about me. I know you want to get out of this. “

A request for comment from Jordan’s office was not immediately returned.

The panel is also seeking information on Jordan’s meeting with Trump and members of his administration in November and December 2020, and in early January 2021, “on strategies to overturn the 2020 election results.” The letter goes on to say that the committee is also interested in any discussions Jordan may have had during this time regarding the possibility of a presidential pardon for those involved in any aspect of the attack on the Capitol or the planning of the two rallies that took place. occurred that day.

Thompson writes that Jordan has already publicly signaled his willingness to cooperate with the panel’s efforts to get answers about January 6, citing the lawmaker’s quote from that October hearing: “I said all the time, I didn’t have nothing to hide. I have been simple the whole way.

On Monday, the committee sent a similar request to Republican Representative Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, who the panel said played “an important role” in efforts to install Jeffrey Clark, then a Justice Department official, as Justice Minister. Acting Attorney General at the end of 2020.

Perry rejected the committee’s request on Tuesday, calling the committee and its investigation “illegitimate.”

In response, Tim Mulvey, a spokesperson for the committee, said that while the panel prefers to collect evidence from members “cooperatively”, it will pursue this information “using other tools” if necessary.

The panel has already interviewed around 300 people as it seeks to create a comprehensive record of the January 6 attack and the events leading up to it.

At the time, Trump was pushing false claims of widespread electoral fraud and pressuring Vice President Mike Pence and Republican members of Congress to try to overturn the tally during congressional certification on Jan.6. Election officials across the country, as well as the courts, have repeatedly rejected Trump’s claims.

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