Commanders owner Daniel Snyder testified before Congress for more than 10 hours
Washington Commanders owner Daniel Snyder testified before Congress on Thursday after evading requests and subpoenas for more than a month.
Snyder spoke before the House Committee on Oversight and Reform for more than 10 hours virtually over Zoom, according to a committee spokesperson, where he answered questions regarding the committee's investigation into workplace misconduct within the Commanders' organization. Snyder's deposition was scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. ET and didn't end until 6:30 p.m. ET.
“Washington Commanders co-owner Dan Snyder today voluntarily testified under oath for nearly 11 hours, on top of the previous cooperation provided to the committee,” a spokesperson for Snyder said in a statement, per NBC Chicago. “Mr. Snyder fully addressed all questions about workplace misconduct, described the Commanders’ dramatic two-year transformation and expressed hope for the organization’s bright future.”
This testimony came after weeks of back-and-forth posturing between Congress and Snyder's legal team.
The committee originally summoned Snyder and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to speak at a hearing on June 22. Goodell agreed to the hearing and later testified – virtually as well – while Snyder declined, citing scheduling conflicts. The committee said it would issue a subpoena to compel Snyder to testify when he didn't show for the June 22 hearing, but Snyder's attorney said he would talk only if Congress pulled the subpoena.
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Snyder and the Commanders have been subject to a congressional investigation since October following the NFL's internal probe into allegations of a hostile workplace environment within Snyder's organization. Reports of sexual misconduct were also among the allegations in the initial bombshell story from the Washington Post in 2020 that shed light on the situation in Washington. The NFL's investigation ended with a $10 million fine and Snyder giving up day-to-day control of the team to his wife.
Snyder is also facing allegations where he reportedly paid $1.6 million to settle a sexual misconduct claim against him in 2009.
What did Snyder tell Congress?
Unlike Goodell's public testimony, Snyder spoke privately behind closed doors and his answers weren't immediately released. While the hearing was not recorded, the committee can release a transcript with Snyder's testimony.
Snyder's testimony was reportedly "intense" at times, a source told Front Office Sports' A.J. Perez. Snyder also reportedly "didn’t decline to answer any of the committee’s questions and the length of the proceedings were not related to interruptions by Snyder’s attorney," per Perez's source.
It's unclear what the committee's next step will be in its investigation into Snyder and the Commanders following Snyder's testimony. At the very least, the group finally spoke with the person at the center of it.
