Jan. 6 committee to release final report after urging DOJ to prosecute Trump: live updates
investigated the Capitol attack on Jan. 6, 2021, is expected Wednesday.
The report culminates an 18-month inquiry into what led to the worst attack on the Capitol since 1814 and what happened that day. With Republicans who labeled the panel partisan and illegitimate taking control of the House in January, the report will be the committee’s last opportunity to summarize its findings and make recommendations aimed at preventing another attack.
Here is what we know so far:
- The report will have at least eight chapters, which track the blockbuster hearings the committee held in August.
- The 160-page executive summary released Monday broke little new ground, but yielded 17 findings that former President Donald Trump was at the center of the plot to overturn results of the 2020 election and spurred an angry, armed mob to the Capitol.
- The committee recommended the Justice Department charge Trump with four crimes: inciting the insurrection, obstruction of Congress, conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy to make false statements.
- Trump responded by calling the panel a “kangaroo court.”
- The committee also recommended Ethics Committee investigations of four House Republicans: Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California and Reps. Jim Jordan of Ohio, Andy Biggs of Arizona and Scott Perry of Pennsylvania.
- Legislative recommendations are expected to aim at preventing another attack. The committee already endorsed an overhaul of the 1887 Electoral Count Act, which Congress will be voting on this week as part of a spending package.
Committee urges Justice Department to charge Trump
In an unprecedented move, the committee recommended Monday the Justice Department charge Trump criminally.
The recommendation is nonbinding and the department already has a special counsel investigating Trump. But the evidence the committee gathered could provide a roadmap for prosecutors.
The committee argued Trump violated laws governing obstruction of Congress, inciting an insurrection, conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to make a false statement. The Justice Department declined comment on the recommendations.
Trump contends criticism from partisan committee helps him politically
Trump, who has called the committee partisan and illegitimate, said the report would help him run for president in 2024.
Trump noted that he wanted to prevent violence on Jan. 6, but spent most of his statement focused on politics.
“These folks don’t get it that when they come after me, people who love freedom rally around me,” Trump said on the Truth Social website. “It strengthens me. What doesn’t kill me makes me stronger.”
Inciting insurrection:A striking condemnation of Trump – but a high bar for prosecutors