Donald Trump Jr., the eldest son of the former president, is slated in the coming days to testify before the House committee investigating the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, ABC News and Politico reported Thursday.
Sources familiar with the matter said Trump was appearing voluntarily after the Jan. 6 committee asked him to speak without subpoenaing him. Ivanka Trump, the president’s eldest daughter and another close confidant of her father’s, also appeared before the committee earlier this month of her own accord.
Donald Trump Jr. did not immediately respond to requests for comment sent to the Trump Organization, where he serves as executive vice president alongside his brother, Eric Trump.
Earlier this month, text messages between Donald Trump Jr. and former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows revealed that the Trump son discussed ways to seize the White House from Joe Biden before the election was even called.
“It’s very simple,” he wrote, according to texts obtained by CNN. “We have multiple paths. We control them all,” he said, before outlining multiple ways they could fight the election results ― lawsuits, pressure on state lawmakers ― in the case of President Donald Trump’s loss.
Those comments “could be a smoking gun” in the committee’s investigation, former U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance told MSNBC.
Donald Trump Jr. joined his father in speaking at the rally that preceded the Capitol riot last year, telling the crowd that Joe Biden’s victory over his father was a farce and urging Republicans in Congress to vote against certifying the election that day.
“To those Republicans, many of which may be voting on things in the coming hours: You have an opportunity today,” he said. “You can be a hero, or you can be a zero. And the choice is yours. But we are all watching. The whole world is watching, folks. Choose wisely.”
Once the riot at the Capitol took off, Donald Trump Jr. texted Meadows saying they needed the senior Trump to quell the chaos and admitted that the situation was out of control ― despite public comments he made later downplaying the ordeal.
“He has to lead now. It has gone too far and gotten out of hand,” Donald Trump Jr. wrote.
Kimberly Guilfoyle, Donald Trump’s Jr.’s fiancée and a former Fox News personality, also appeared before the committee this week, sources told The Associated Press.