The list of House Republicans signed on to an amicus brief led by Rep. Mike Johnson, R-La., in support of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's election challenge in the U.S. Supreme Court grew to 126 Friday after the filing corrected a "clerical error" that had omitted 20 signers, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.
"This brief presents [our] concern as Members of Congress, shared by untold millions of their constituents, that the unconstitutional irregularities involved in the 2020 presidential election cast doubt upon its outcome and the integrity of the American system of elections," the brief read.
Johnson, a member of House GOP leadership and a staunch supporter of President Donald Trump, told CNN in a statement:
"Most of my Republican colleagues in the House, and countless millions of our constituents across the country, now have serious concerns with the integrity of our election system. The purpose of our amicus brief will be to articulate this concern and express our sincere belief that the great importance of this issue merits a full and careful consideration by the Court."
Trump has called Johnson to thank him for his assistance in the election challenge, Johnson tweeted Wednesday:
"President Trump called me this morning to let me know how much he appreciates the amicus brief we are filing on behalf of Members of Congress. Indeed, 'this is the big one!'"
Paxton's case argues that the swing states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Georgia unconstitutionally violated state election laws and therefore should not certify their election results to the U.S. House.
Already, 18 states led by GOP attorneys general have signed on to Paxton's case, which called for the four battleground states to respond by Thursday afternoon. In all four cases, the attorneys general wrote to the court to reject Paxton's lawsuit as dependent on flimsy evidence and bogus allegations.
Among those states, only Georgia has a Republican attorney general, Chris Carr. Even he argued that it'll be tough for Texas to show it has been harmed by the elections in other states.
"The novel and far-reaching claims that Texas asserts, and the breathtaking remedies it seeks, are impossible to ground in legal principles and unmanageable," Carr wrote in Georgia's filing.
Still, the Trump camp contends, there are constitutional arguments to be made about the certification of election results in states that changed election law amid the coronavirus pandemic without supporting legislation.
Key Republicans signing on to Johnson's amicus brief include:
- House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.
- House Minority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La.
- House Judiciary Ranking Member Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio.
- House Freedom Caucus Chairman Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz.
- Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind.
GOP Conference Chairwoman Liz Cheney, R-Wyo. did not sign on.
McCarthy and 19 others, who were not included in the initial filing because of what Johnsnon called a "clerical error," were added to the filing Friday morning.
The Trump campaign has rejected the Dec. 8 "safe harbor deadline" of election challenges and even said Dec. 14 electoral college vote does not seal the deal. Instead, according to Trump campaign senior legal counsel Jenna Ellis, Jan. 6 is the date the House reviews the electoral college vote.
It is the hope of the Trump campaign and President Trump's lawyers the House will reject the 62 electoral college votes from those four pivotal states.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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