After speaking his opposition before the U.S. Senate in the confirmation hearing for Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson, Attorney General Steve Marshall was questioned by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI).
Whitehouse pressed Marshall regarding the riots that occurred in the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Marshall was Chairman of the Rule of Law Defense Fund (RLDF) and the Republican Attorneys General Association (RAGA) at the time of the Jan. 6 riots. According to Whitehouse, RAGA was responsible for sending automated calls asking citizens to attend the “stop the steal” rally that preceded the riots in the Capitol. Marshall maintains that he had no knowledge of the funding of the automated calls, nor did he have knowledge of or approve the message in the automated calls.
“Did RAGA or RLDF have staff present here on Jan. 6?" Whitehouse asked.
“Can’t speak to that,” Marshall said. “But, Senator, what I can tell you is that we have denounced lawlessness. Not only as it related to what took place on Jan. 6, but also the lawlessness that continues to go on across our country with violent crime. And what I would hope is a part of this hearing, that this body is likewise questioning our nominee about her philosophy on criminal justice as it relates to decisions she would make on the court.”
Whitehouse further pressed Marshall about the 2020 election.
“Is Joseph R. Biden of Delaware the duly elected and lawfully serving president of the United States of America?" Whitehouse asked.
“He is the president of this country,” Marshall replied.
When Whitehouse repeated his question, Marshall gave a nearly identical retort.
“Are you answering that, omitting the language ‘duly elected and lawfully serving,’ purposefully?” Whitehouse asked.
“I’m answering the question,” Marshall said. “He is the President of the United States."
“And you have no view as to whether he was duly elected or is lawfully serving?” Whitehouse asked finally.
“I am telling you, he is the President of the United States,” Marshall said.
Whitehouse took the final retort and ceded his question time.
Marshall was one of several Attorneys General to sign his name to a lawsuit filed by the State of Texas to overturn the result of the 2020 election in which Donald Trump was unseated by Joe Biden. Marshall released a statement on the outcome of the vote in December of 2020 before the riots took place at the Capitol.
“The unconstitutional actions and fraudulent votes in other states not only affect the citizens of those states, they affect the citizens of all states — of the entire United States,” Marshall said. “Every unlawful vote counted, or lawful vote uncounted, debase and dilute citizens’ free exercise of the franchise.”
The Supreme Court quickly threw out the Texas lawsuit in early December of 2020.
Of the many witnesses called before the congressional committee tasked with investigating the Jan. 6 riots, Marshall has not yet been asked to appear.
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