The Justice Department is weighing perjury and obstruction-of-justice charges against Cassidy Hutchinson, the former aide to Mark Meadows who testified against Donald Trump before the January 6 committee, according to two sources familiar with the matter. Prosecutors are not expected to seek an indictment from a federal grand jury until after the midterm elections, the sources say.
The case centers on whether Hutchinson's testimony changed over time. Prosecutors have compared her interviews with the committee against her testimony to former special counsel Jack Smith, and have focused on the fact that Smith did not corroborate much of her account. They have also noted the Secret Service's denial of an altercation in the presidential limousine, and a dispute over who wrote a notecard that Hutchinson claimed she prepared for Trump during the riot.
Some Justice Department officials are skeptical that a viable case exists, given the high legal bar for proving perjury. The investigation follows a criminal referral from Representative Barry Loudermilk and was assigned to the Civil Rights Division, an unusual move for a case that does not appear to involve civil rights violations. The division is led by Harmeet Dhillon, a Trump loyalist, and the effort is part of a broader DOJ push against Trump's perceived political enemies.