Scott Perry

Pa. Republicans' roles in attempts to overturn 2020 election draws scrutiny in congressional, FBI probes. Members of the Jan. 6 committee have singled out those ...

And also Thursday, another Pennsylvania congressman — U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly — was implicated by Sen. Ron Johnson (R., Wisc.), in an attempt to get false electors from Wisconsin and Michigan into the hands of Vice President Mike Pence as he arrived at the Capitol to certify Biden’s win. One — based on a video he found on YouTube — led to top Defense officials contacting the Italian government about a conspiracy supposedly involving that country’s satellites affecting U.S. votes. “Facts were clearly just an inconvenience.” The officials testified that putting Clark, an environmental lawyer and then-acting head of the Justice Department’s civil division, in charge “may very well have spiraled us into a constitutional crisis.” Meanwhile, in Allegheny County, FBI agents interviewed the chair of the county Republican Party as part of a nationwide investigation of a plan to send endorse false pro-Trump electors from key swing states. On Capitol Hill, U.S. Rep. Scott Perry (R., Pa.) and Philadelphia-born attorney Jeffrey Clark were key figures in testimony by three top officials from Trump’s Department of Justice. The former officials detailed how Perry peddled false conspiracy theories to the highest levels of the government, hoping to launch investigations that would cast doubt upon the vote.

Rep. Scott Perry texted then White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows requesting that attorney Jeff Clark be elevated to Attorney General ahead of January 6.

U.S. Rep. Scott Perry pushed to restructure the Justice Department as part of efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

They described a high-stakes Oval Office meeting where Trump considered firing Jeffrey Rosen, the former acting attorney general, and installing ex-DOJ official ...

Those involved with the insurrection have repeatedly pointed to Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) as the chief conduit for the House GOP Conference to the White ...

The committee obtained records from the National Archives showing that Perry was among the Republican members of Congress who met with the president in the Oval Office on Dec. 21, 2020. Five people died on that day or in the immediate aftermath, and 140 police officers were assaulted. “I say this to my Republican colleagues who are defending the indefensible,” she said. Perry has so far stonewalled the committee, defying a subpoena requesting his cooperation in the investigation. Despite being debunked by Justice officials, the theory made its way to Kash Patel, a Defense Department official, who called Donoghue to gauge his view. That day, Meadows tweeted that the meeting’s purpose was “preparing to fight back against mounting evidence of voter fraud. Hutchinson told the committee that Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) talked about pardons but never specifically asked for one. Another former Justice official who testified Thursday, Richard Donoghue, said the theory was “pure insanity” and “patently absurd.” The committee showed Dec. 31, 2020, text messages between Perry and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows that included a YouTube video about it, with Perry asking: “Why can’t we just work with the Italian government?” That wasn’t Perry’s only involvement in encouraging Trump to get the vote overturned. And Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) was at the heart of bringing it to Donald Trump’s attention. Meadows discussed the claim “frequently,” according to Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), who led the questioning during the committee hearing on Thursday, which focused on Trump’s efforts to pressure the Justice Department to help overturn the 2020 presidential election results.

In the excerpts, Hutchinson listed a number of Republican Congressmen who had asked for what she termed “pre-emptive pardons” from the president in the waning ...

“In short, he (Trump) was willing to sacrifice our republic to prolong his presidency. The next day, on Dec. 28, 2020, Thursday’s testimony and other reports showed that Rosen and Donoghue privately rejected Clark’s proposal to pressure state legislatures. In his only live comment on the issue to date, made during an interview on a Philadelphia talk radio station on June 10, Perry called the pardon story just “the latest fabrication from a sham committee... It was reported in January 2021 that Perry, a Republican from Dillsburg, introduced attorney Jeffrey Clark to Trump in December 2020. Thursday’s hearing focused on Trump’s efforts to weaponize the Department of Justice in his quest to remain in power despite electoral defeat, an effort Perry was integral to. “Throughout the past four years, I worked with Assistant Attorney General Clark on various legislative matters. A presidential pardon is intended to wipe out a federal indictment or conviction in a case where the president feels it is warranted. “And President’s Congressional friends? They knew that every bit of what they did was a lie, and it was wrong.” In response, according to Donoghue’s testimony and contemporaneous notes, Trump asked that the DOJ leaders “just say the election was corrupt and leave the rest to me and the [Republican] Congressmen.” Donoghue understood that to be a reference to the Republican House members, like Perry, who would challenge the Electoral College certification on January 6. Rosen and Donoghue - who both testified in person Thursday - recalled telling Trump that DOJ was doing its job, with Rosen at one point noting that the department “can’t and won’t just flip a switch and change the election.” A top Trump White House aide has told investigators with the House committee investigating the U.S. Capitol attacks that U.S. Rep. Scott Perry, R-York County, was one of several Congressmen to inquire about a presidential pardon in the wake of the mob attacks by supporters of former President Donald J. Trump on Jan. 6, 2021.

The Jan. 6 committee resumed its public hearings Thursday with a focus on Donald Trump's attempts to pressure top Justice Department officials to provide ...

The GOP lawmakers – Mo Brooks, Matt Gaetz, Andy Biggs, Louie Gohmert and Scott Perry – have denied wrongdoing.

“I called President Trump on Saturday and said we’ve got to have a meeting. She also said Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., did not ask her for a pardon, but she heard from another staffer that the Georgia firebrand had asked for one. Brooks told CNN there was "a concern Democrats would abuse the judicial system by prosecuting and jailing Republicans." Greene responded with a tweet: "Saying 'I heard' means you don’t know. Hutchinson said, “Mr. Gaetz and Mr. Brooks both advocated for there to be a blanket pardon for members involved in that meeting and a handful of other members that weren’t at the Dec. 21 meeting." John McEntee, who ran the White House's personnel office, said he also knew about Gaetz's request. Jan. 6 committee evidence: Is the Jan. 6 committee sitting on explosive evidence of Trump's role in the Capitol assault? McEntee also told the committee that Trump "had hinted at a blanket pardon" for a number of associates involved in the "January thing." Gaetz did not address the pardon issue directly, but said in a tweet that "the January 6 Committee is an unconstitutional political sideshow." "He told me he asked Meadows for a pardon," he said. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., the committee's other Republican, said: "The only reason I know to ask for a pardon is because you think you have committed a crime." The GOP lawmakers – Mo Brooks of Alabama, Matt Gaetz of Florida, Andy Biggs of Arizona, Louie Gohmert of Texas, and Scott Perry of Pennsylvania – have denied wrongdoing and accused the committee of playing politics.

Former Trump White House aides testified to the Jan. 6 select committee that six House Republicans sought presidential pardons in the aftermath of the ...

- Hutchinson also said she had heard that Greene reached out to the White House counsel's office to ask for a pardon. The big picture: The officials recounted a series of instances in which they repeatedly told former President Trump he was spewing conspiracy theories and that his claims of election fraud were not true. Why it matters: Trump had repeatedly asked the DOJ to investigate election conspiracy theories, using various avenues to pressure them into doing his bidding. "Any Committee Members or witness involved should be ashamed for perpetuating such a falsehood, but that would require a conscience to feel such shame." - Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) - Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) - Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) Details: Brooks emailed the White House requesting "general (all purpose) pardons" for himself, Gaetz and the 147 Republican House members and senators who voted against certifying Arizona's and Pennsylvania's electors, according to Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.). - Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) - Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) - Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) - Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) in particular was a champion of installing DOJ official Jeffrey Clark, a vocal believer of Trump's claims, as acting attorney general.

Days after Jan. 6, 2021, Republican lawmakers who strategized with President Donald Trump asked top White House officials to help arrange for pardons, ...

As part of that plot, Trump had pressed his DOJ leaders to issue a letter describing concerns about election irregularities in multiple states. The two also discussed a potential deputy for Clark. The select committee has also obtained testimony that Meadows burned some papers in his office after meeting with Perry during those crucial post-election weeks. The select panel showed Thursday that Perry — who now chairs the House Freedom Caucus — helped link Trump with Jeffrey Clark, a little-known DOJ environmental official whom Trump hoped would amplify his debunked claims of voter fraud. Perry, on the other hand, reiterated his denial that he asked for a pardon: “I stand by my statement that I never sought a Presidential pardon for myself or other Members of Congress.” Rosen and Donoghue also described their experiences on Jan. 6, noting that they were on the phone constantly with congressional leaders, cabinet officials, then-Vice President Mike Pence and senior White House aides. The hearing highlighted how Trump’s West Wing became a haven for conspiracy theories about election fraud that he then tasked DOJ and other cabinet agencies to investigate. Its fifth public hearing underscored the lengths Trump and his allies went to enlist DOJ in his effort to seize a second term after losing the election. Those GOP lawmakers also helped apply pressure on the Justice Department to legitimize those false fraud claims. Donoghue emphasized that Trump made clear he wasn’t interested in the merit of any election fraud allegations — only in DOJ’s willingness to endorse them, then leave the rest to him and his allies. Brooks said in a statement that “the email request says it all,” citing concerns that Democrats would prosecute or jail Republicans for their objections to certifying the electoral votes. None of the lawmakers ever received pardons. At an earlier hearing, the Jan. 6 panel showed an email from attorney John Eastman, one of the key architects of Trump’s bid to stay in power, asking to be placed on Trump’s “pardon list.” He, too, never received a pardon.

In her opening statements at the fifth House January 6th Select Committee hearing, Republican Congresswoman Liz Cheney teased proof that some of her GOP ...

The data left no room for doubt, nothing to question, and the Constitution left no room for President Trump to change the outcome of the election. The bottom line the most senior leadership of the justice department, from Attorney General Bill Barr to Jeff Rosen, his successor, and his deputy, Rich Donahue. Everyone except Jeff Clark was telling President Trump the very same thing. Clark planned to say publicly the DOJ was investigating Georgia’s election results, despite no evidence to warrant a probe. “They will view it as not having the authority to enforce what needs to be done.” Perry justified investigations into the 2020 Election by pushing debunked conspiracy theories. “I stand by my statement that I never sought a Presidential pardon for myself or other Members of Congress,” a Perry spokesman wrote in a statement. That insanity went from the Internet to the highest levels of government in no time. “A call was actually placed by Secretary Miller to the Attaché in Italy to investigate the claim that Italian satellites were changing votes from Trump to Biden … this is one of the best examples of the lengths former President Trump would go to to stay in power.” In a text to Meadows, Perry sent a link to a video alleging Italian satellites altered the vote count. The two planned to advocate for Clark’s promotion to attorney general, and the Jan. 6 Committee confirmed Trump promised Clark the job, if he pursued claims of fraud. Perry was a central figure in the hearing, due to his previously reported text message and email exchanges with Meadows, advocating for election investigations based on debunked claims of fraud. Panel member Adam Kinzinger, a Republican from Illinois, read aloud text messages from Perry urging his former colleague Meadows to speak with Jeffrey Clark, an assistant attorney general at the Department of Justice who was sympathetic to Trump’s plan to overturn the election.