Ex-Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows sues U.S. House Jan. 6 committee

WASHINGTON, DC -- Former Trump White House chief of Staff Mark Meadows is suing the U.S. House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Meadows is asking a federal court to block enforcement of both the subpoena the committee issued him as well as the subpoena it issued to Verizon for his phone records, according to the complaint filed Wednesday.

The lawsuit comes after the head of the House committee investigating the Capitol insurrection said he has “no choice” but to move forward with contempt charges against Meadows.

Rep. Bennie Thompson said in a letter that Meadows has already provided documents to the committee, including emails and texts about Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn his 2020 election defeat. Yet Meadows did not show up Wednesday for a scheduled deposition.

Meadows' lawyer informed the committee this week that Meadows was ending his cooperation. The lawyer cited the former president's efforts in court to invoke executive privilege.