Rep. Liz Cheney is under fire for allegedly having communicated with Jan. 6 witness Cassidy Hutchinson through an encrypted messaging app. Cheney allegedly circumvented Hutchinson’s lawyer, Stefan Passantino.
The actions have raised ethical concerns, as Passantino was unaware of the communications and had not authorized them.
“Our investigation has uncovered unethical back-channel communications between former Rep. Liz Cheney and Cassidy Hutchinson just before Hutchinson changed her sworn testimony,” Rep. Barry Loudermilk said.
“Not only is communicating with a witness without their attorney present unethical, it undermines the integrity of an investigation,” Loudermilk added.
Cheney’s interactions with Hutchinson occurred shortly before Hutchinson changed her sworn testimony, which included significant claims about former President Trump’s actions on January 6.
“As a licensed attorney, Liz Cheney would have known the ethical and legal issues with this communication,” Loudermilk said.
“Clearly, Cheney did not want Stefan Passantino representing Hutchinson; as shortly after Cheney and Hutchinson began communicating, Cheney convinced Hutchinson to fire Passantino, and arranged for a new attorney to represent Hutchinson pro-bono,” Loudermilk added.
Hutchinson later acknowledged Cheney’s role in helping her secure new legal representation, which facilitated her cooperation with the committee.
