WASHINGTON — Republican Texas Rep. Ronny Jackson on Monday was among three additional members of Congress the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S Capitol requested testimony from.

What You Need To Know

  • Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, on Monday was among three member of Congress asked to testify by the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol

  • In a strongly worded statement, Jackson said he will not testify and referred to the investigation as a “witch hunt” and “ruthless crusade against President Trump and his allies”

  • The nine-member panel is asking for the members of Congress to testify about their involvement in meetings at the White House and direct conversations with Trump as he sought to challenge the results of the 2020 presidential election

  • A recently publicized text exchange between members of the right-wing extremist group the Oath Keepers shows that some individuals in the group were looking to protect Rep. Jackson from rioters on Jan 6. 

Jackson in a statement made it clear he has no intention of testifying before the committee and referred to the investigation as a “ruthless crusade against President Trump and his allies.”

In addition to Jackson, committee chairman Rep. Bennie G. Thompson, D-Miss., and vice chair Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., requested cooperation from Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., and Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Ala., asking them to “provide information for the committee's investigation into the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol and its causes.”  

“Yet again, the illegitimate January 6 Committee proves its agenda is malicious and not substantive. It speaks volumes that the Committee would choose to share its letter with the media before it was shared with me,” Jackson wrote. “I do not know, nor did I have contact with, those who exchanged text messages about me on January 6. In fact, I was proud to help defend the House Floor from those who posed a threat to my colleagues.”

“The Committee’s witch hunt against me is nothing more than a coordinated attempt to do the media’s work on taxpayers’ dime. Their attempt to drag out a manufactured narrative illustrates why the American people are sick of the media and this partisan Committee’s use of January 6 as a political tool against conservatives they do not like,” Jackson continued. “For these reasons, I will not participate in the illegitimate Committee’s ruthless crusade against President Trump and his allies.”

The nine-member panel is asking for the members of Congress to testify about their involvement in meetings at the White House, direct conversations with Trump as he sought to challenge the results of the 2020 presidential election as well as the planning and coordination of rallies on and before Jan. 6, 2021.

The letter came weeks after investigators revealed new evidence of the three lawmakers' involvement in former President Donald Trump’s desperate attempt to stay in power. Reps. Andy Biggs, Mo Brooks and Ronny Jackson are members of the ultra-right House Freedom Caucus that have in recent years aligned themselves with Trump.

A recently publicized text exchange between members of the right-wing extremist group the Oath Keepers shows that some individuals in the group were looking to protect Rep. Jackson from rioters on Jan 6. The panel wants to know why the congressman was singled out.

Jackson, a former White House physician to two presidents, emerged as a vocal Trump ally, but his nomination as Veterans Affairs secretary was withdrawn amid allegations that he created a hostile work environment and improperly distributed prescription drugs. Jackson strenuously denied those claims, and went on to run for Congress from Texas.