FBI delivers subpoenas to Pennsylvania GOP lawmakers over 'alternate electors' plan

The FBI questioned and in some cases, subpoenaed, several Pennsylvanian Republican lawmakers on Tuesday and Wednesday in a hunt for more information on Representative Scott Perry and his communications with former President Donald Trump concerning the 2020 election.

According to PennLive, the federal investigators questioned members of both the Pennsylvania House and Senate and their questioning centered around Perry's 2020 alleged goal of seeking alternate electors who would vote to keep Trump in office. Perry is a staunch Trump ally and backer of Trump’s claims that the 2020 election featured massive voter fraud.

On Tuesday, the FBI  seized Perry's phone one day after they raided Trump's home at Mar-a-Lago purportedly to investigate whether Trump mishandled or otherwise maintained classified documents.

Perry, who is a five-term Republican congressman and is a founding member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, had his phone confiscated at the airport a day after the raid.

Perry said in a statement to Fox News, "This morning, while traveling with my family, 3 FBI agents visited me and seized my cell phone. They made no attempt to contact my lawyer, who would have made arrangements for them to have my phone if that was their wish. I’m outraged - though not surprised - that the FBI under the direction of Merrick Garland’s DOJ, would seize the phone of a sitting Member of Congress."

PennLive reports that six anonymous sources told them that many of the Pennsylvanian Republican lawmakers were promised that they were not the targets of the investigation, despite the subpoenas, and were asked to further assist the FBI in their dragnet. All were told that they likely have information that is valuable to federal authorities.

A spokesman for Pennsylvania Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman said, "Federal subpoenas typically request confidentiality from the witnesses being subpoenaed in order to avoid impediment to the ongoing investigation, so it would be inappropriate to comment on whether members have received subpoenas or not. If subpoenaed as witnesses, our members will certainly comply with requests for documents or information not covered by an applicable privilege."

Perry said Wednesday that he was informed that he is not the target of the investigation that prompted the seizing of his phone and that he is cooperating.

According to CNN, Perry is closely connected to Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark who also supported Trump's 2020 election claims. Perry has also been scrutinized by the January 6 Select Committee for allegedly telling Trump to continue fighting the election results.