Rep. Scott Perry (R-York) is facing calls to resign after a published report said he collaborated with former President Donald Trump in a scheme to overturn legally certified election results in Georgia.
The New York Times reported Perry, who is just starting his fifth term, connected Trump with Philadelphia lawyer Jeffrey Clark, who was an acting assistant attorney general at the U.S. Justice Department and who was sympathetic to Trump’s effort to push an election-fraud lie to stay in power. It said Trump considered firing Acting Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen, who was not willing to pursue Trump’s claims in Georgia.
Clark, the Times reported, wanted the Justice Department to announce an election fraud investigation in Georgia. Those claims have been repeatedly debunked or thrown out of court.
Trump didn’t carry out the plan.
Now Perry, who voted Jan. 6 against certifying Pennsylvania’s election results, is under fire.
State Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta (D-Philadelphia), tweeted, “Hey @ScottPerry, resign.”
State Attorney General Josh Shapiro, with a tweet referring to the 14th Amendment, appeared to indicate Perry has disqualified himself from holding office.
Section 3 says a person can’t hold certain offices, including U.S. representative, if they “have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the (U.S.), or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof.”
Former auditor general Eugene DePasquale, who lost to Perry in November, tweeted “Perry must go!”
And the Democratic Party of York County said Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi should call for Perry expulsion if he doesn’t resign immediately.
“There is no question he has been involved in treasonous activities in an attempt to usurp the United States Government,” according to a statement from the party. “From his continued calls to invalidate the 2020 election results to his involvement in coordinating an attempt to take over the United States Department of Justice with then President Trump, Perry has shown he is not serving the constituents of his district, nor is he focused on anything other than his own self being.
“Scott Perry has shown reckless and dangerous behaviors and needs to be gone from office as soon as possible to avoid further damage to our democracy.”
Perry has supported conspiracy theories in the past. For example, in January 2018, he went on national TV and said there was credible evidence that ISIS was involved in the Las Vegas mass shooting. Perry offered nothing to back up his claims. The shooter had no ties to ISIS.
County, state and federal judges and public officials of both political parties, and election experts, have concluded the 2020 election was free and fair. Pennsylvania legally certified its electoral votes Dec. 14, and multiple courts dismissed election-challenge cases for reasons including lack of evidence and lack of standing to sue.
But seven Pa. congressmen, including Perry, signed on to a lawsuit filed by Texas that would have invalidated votes in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia and Wisconsin. The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear the case, citing a lack of standing for Texas to sue, and the two justices who said SCOTUS should hear the case said they would not have granted the relief it sought.
Perry could not be reached for comment. His most recent Facebook post was Jan. 22 about National Sanctity of Human Life Day. He has not tweeted since Jan. 6, when he condemned the attack on the U.S. Capitol.
The Times said its report was based on interviews with four unnamed former Trump administration officials. Clark told the Times that its report contained inaccuracies.
