Joseph Sabino Mistick: Jan. 6 investigation will test oath of office – TribLIVE

In the early days of the Civil War, President Lincoln knew that Washington, D.C., was crawling with traitors to the Republic. Together with Congress, Lincoln required a stronger oath of office that all appointed and elected government officials were required to sign, one version of which was called The Ironclad Test Oath.

As the war ended, some changes were made to the oath to accommodate efforts to bring the Confederates back into the Union. But much of that Civil War oath has survived, and it is still part of the oath that all members of Congress and appointed high officials take today.

I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic are words that were necessary to weed out traitorous Northerners and seditious Southerners. They are still the opening words of the oath, and they have served us well.

American officials do not swear allegiance to any man or woman or office holder. They swear to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law. And those oaths soon will be tested as the bipartisan Jan. 6 congressional committee continues to investigate official involvement in the domestic terrorist attack on the Capitol.

Already, some former Trump administration officials have declared they will not honor the committees subpoenas. President Trump himself has urged four of his former aides to ignore subpoenas to testify or provide documents, and a letter from Trumps lawyers assured them that they are shielded by executive privilege.

All of this will be sorted out by the courts. But any former or current officials who have sworn to defend our Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic will have a very hard time squaring their refusal to testify with their oath of office.

Trump himself has been clear about his judgment of those who have refused to cooperate with official investigations in the past. When commenting on those who have asserted their Fifth Amendment rights and refused to testify, he said, If you are not guilty of a crime, what do you need immunity for?

And the oath of office will be put to the test on the other side, too. For the congressional committee members and the United States attorney general to honor their oaths, they will have to do everything in their power to enforce the subpoenas and compel the testimony of those with inside knowledge of the attack.

That will mean seeking civil and criminal sanctions against those who refuse to testify. Otherwise, they will have failed to defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

During the police attacks on protesters outside the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, the crowd repeatedly chanted, The whole world is watching. This is another one of those times.

Our European allies are questioning our resolve to lead the free world; China continues to challenge us economically and militarily; and Vladimir Putin is biding his time and waiting to see how this turns out.

In the balance, we will see if we are still a nation of laws whose leaders are part of our constitutional order. And all that will turn on whether former and current officials honor the oath they took when assuming office. The stakes are high.

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Joseph Sabino Mistick: Jan. 6 investigation will test oath of office - TribLIVE