Mark Meadows first agreed to cooperate with the January 6 committee, then pulled back. He turned over a trove of texts and emails, then claimed executive privilege.
The records he did provide showed Trump allies plotting strategy, Fox News hosts pleading for restraint, and lawmakers tied up in the pressure campaign. Meadows himself was central — in the room, on the calls, moving the levers.
Executive privilege isn’t a shield for plotting sedition. Congress cannot function if its subpoenas bend to convenience. Every retreat emboldens the next witness to defy.
The committee must choose whether to enforce its authority or let it evaporate. The precedent set now will decide whether subpoenas mean anything the next time power is challenged. Failure would be more than symbolic. It would teach every future witness that stonewalling is safe, and accountability optional.