After months of engagement, Trump’s former 'body man' - a phrase that describes a 'civilian personal assistant' - appeared virtually on Monday before the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the US Capitol, ABC News reported, citing multiple sources.
The 9-member panel has yet to confirm whether the virtual deposition took place.
Luna was subpoenaed by the panel in November 2021 due to allegations that he was at the White House on the morning of January 6, 2021, as well as for his proximity to Trump when the latter pressured then-Vice President Mike Pence to refrain from certifying the results of the 2020 presidential election.
“We need to know precisely what role the former President and his aides played in efforts to stop the counting of the electoral votes and if they were in touch with anyone outside the White House attempting to overturn the outcome of the election,” House Select Committee Chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) said in a November 2021 release.
It is known that Luna has been in contact with the investigation, as the panel previously confirmed cooperation from the former assistant, as well as ex-White House national security adviser Michael Flynn and former White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany.
“As a White House Press Secretary you made multiple public statements from the White House and elsewhere about purported fraud in the November 2020 election, which individuals who attacked the U.S. Capitol echoed on Jan. 6,” read the subpoena issued to the former White House Press Secretary.
McEnany, who worked on Trump’s 2020 reelection campaign, has since turned over text messages relevant to the scope of the January 6 probe.
In one message released by the committee, Fox News opinion show host Sean Hannity asserted to McEnany that it was imperative to keep then-President Trump away from certain “crazy people.”
“Yes, 100%” McEnany responded, according to the panel’s release.
The panel contends that McEnany was part of Trump’s entourage ahead of his pre-riot “Stop the Steal” rally, and was also near the outgoing US president while he reportedly watched the deadly riot being carried out by his supporters.
The committee may be able to conclude its depositions as early as April 1, according to Chairman Thompson.
Hundreds of interviews have been conducted since the House Select Committee began its investigation, with notable interviews from longtime Trump spokesperson Jason Miller, Cassidy Hutchinson, a former aide to then-Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, and White House aide Ross Worthington, who was one of the writers for Trump’s ellipse speech.
At the same time, it remains unclear whether a formal testimony will be provided by key players like ex-Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani, who is in contact with the group via his own legal team.
“We really want to have engagement with everybody we approached. But some we've been able to get it and some we haven't,” Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA), one of nine committee members, told CNN.
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