Kimberly Guilfoyle subpoenaed by House Jan. 6 committee

WASHINGTON — (AP) — The House committee investigating the U.S. Capitol insurrection subpoenaed Kimberly Guilfoyle, the fiancée of former President Donald Trump’s eldest son, on Thursday after she abruptly ended a voluntary interview with lawmakers last week.

The panel is seeking testimony and additional records from Guilfoyle, who spoke at the rally Trump held on the White House Ellipse on Jan. 6, 2021, before the riot at the Capitol. Lawmakers say she raised funds for for the rally and was in direct contact with its key participants and organizers.

“Ms. Guilfoyle met with Donald Trump inside the White House, spoke at the rally that took place before the riot on January 6th, and apparently played a key role organizing and raising funds for that event," Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson, the committee’s Democratic chairman, said in a statement.

Guilfoyle, who is engaged to Donald Trump Jr., initially complied with the committee's request to voluntarily come in and talk to lawmakers, but at their virtual interview last Friday she objected to the presence of lawmakers and cut off the questioning.

Joe Tacopina, Guilfoyle’s attorney, said the committee “sabotaged” the voluntary interview “by changing the terms to which she agreed and leaking confidential information to the media.” But he added that his client will “testify truthful to any question. She has done nothing wrong.”

The committee is now using its subpoena powers to get Guilfoyle to cooperate, a move they have been careful not to resort to for many in the Trump family as they hope to bring them in on a voluntary basis. The committee has received a number of documents it had requested from Guilfoyle but is now looking to learn more about her meetings with the former president and members of his family in the Oval Office the morning of the attack.

It was in that room that morning when Trump last spoke with then-Vice President Mike Pence prior to the joint session of Congress to certify the results of the presidential election. Congressional investigators have released testimony that Trump pressured Pence in that phone call to intervene in, delay or even halt the counting of the Electoral College tally, a power he did not have in his ceremonial role.

The nine-member panel is also looking to talk to Guilfoyle because she was one of a few in Trump's orbit who spoke to the crowd at the rally held on the White House Ellipse in support of the former president and his allegations of election fraud.

“You told the crowd, ‘We will not allow the liberals and the Democrats to steal our dreams or steal our elections’ and were filmed backstage prior to your speech telling people to ‘Have the courage to do the right thing. Fight!’" the committee wrote in its letter to Guilfoyle.

The committee said that based on the evidence it has gathered, “Guilfoyle also has claimed to have been involved in raising funds to pay for the Ellipse rally.”

“She also apparently communicated with others about the decision by the then-President about who was and was not allowed to speak at the rally, including concerns raised about him sharing the stage with individuals including Ali Alexander, Alex Jones, and Roger Stone,” the statement continued.

The committee also disclosed that Guilfoyle has only turned over 110 pages of the 14 document request they have made and has refused to reschedule her interview after abruptly walking out last week when she found out committee members would be present on the virtual call.

The subpoena to Guilfoyle comes a day after the committee issued a filing in federal court that suggested crimes may have been committed by Trump and his associates in the failed effort to overturn the outcome of the 2020 presidential election.

___

This story has been corrected to show the committee believes Guilfoyle was in contact with rally participants and organizers, not organizers of the attack on the Capitol.