House Oversight Committee to subpoena Commanders’ owner Daniel Snyder

WASHINGTON, D.C. - In a heated hearing at the House Committee on Oversight and Reform Wednesday afternoon, Chairwoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY) announced her intention to subpoena Washington Commanders owner Daniel Snyder for testimony at a deposition in one week's time.

Snyder, who announced through his attorney that he would not attend Wednesday’s hearing, is under investigation for Washington’s workplace misconduct, including sexual harrasment and assault allegations.

This announcement comes after Chairwoman Maloney released a 29-page memo Wednesday morning that details the findings by the committee which state, “Snyder launched a shadow investigation in an apparent effort to discredit his accusers in the eyes of the NFL and offer up an alternative target for the investigation.”

“Mr. Snyder’s refusal to testify sends a clear signal that he is more concerned about protecting himself than coming clean to the American public,” said Chairwoman Maloney during Wednesday’s hearing. “If the NFL is unwilling to hold Mr. Snyder accountable, then I am prepared to do so.”

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell in his opening remarks to the Committee declared the Commanders’ workplace misconduct, “unprofessional and unacceptable,” while continuing to defend the league’s decision to withhold the written report of its internal investigation of the franchise and Mr. Snyder.

During his cross-examination remotely, Goodell held firm on the league’s stance to ensure confidentiality to participants in attorney Beth Wilkinson’s investigation into the Commanders. In July 2021, the NFL hit the franchise with a $10 million fine and appointed Mr. Snyder’s wife and team’s Co-CEO, Tanya Snyder, to take over day-to-day operations for an unspecified amount of time after issuing a summary of its findings.

Since then, another investigation has been held by the NFL, led by former U.S. Attorney and Chairwoman of the Securities and Exchange Commission Mary Jo White, in regards to new allegations made to the Committee by former Commanders employee Tiffany Johnston.

Johnston told the committee that Snyder groped her at a team dinner and attempted to force her in his limousine, a claim which Snyder denies.

White is also looking into claims of financial improprieties by a former vice president of sales for the Commanders, and the Goodell reiterated during Wednesday’s hearing that those findings will be made public.