Republican Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan announced Thursday that Republicans plan to subpoena the whistleblower as a witness in the impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump.
Jordan told reporters that he wants the whistleblower to testify both publicly and privately, an idea that Democrats are likely to reject, according to The Hill. The whistleblower spurred an impeachment inquiry earlier this fall, when he filed a complaint over Trump’s phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Jordan is currently the ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, and a close ally of the president’s.
House Republicans have flirted with the idea of moving Jordan over to the House Intelligence Committee to counter Democratic Chairman Adam Schiff, who has been criticized by Republicans for his handling of various probes into the Trump administration and the president’s past business dealings. (RELATED: Here’s Video Of Adam Schiff Reportedly Lying To The National Press)
(Photo By Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
While Republicans would like to see the whistleblower testify, Democrats have the power to squash subpoenas, and have been adamant about protecting the whistleblower from public scrutiny. The whistleblower’s attorney Mark Zaid has stated that his client would be willing to submit written answers to the Intelligence Committee, but has been noncommittal about the whistleblower potentially testifying. (RELATED: Have Democrats Poisoned The Well On Impeachment?)
Zaid has come under scrutiny in recent days for past tweets that included inflammatory anti-Trump rhetoric, including a 2017 tweet where Zaid pledged to help “get rid” of the president.
“It’s very scary. We will get rid of him, and this country is strong enough to survive even him and his supporters,” Zaid wrote at the time. “We have to.”