Tuesday’s January 6 hearing was the most explosive yet.
According to sworn testimony from a key aide to former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, the depths of Donald Trump’s criminal conspiracy to remain in power despite losing the 2020 election included:
- Trump *knew* there were numerous armed people in the crowd — some with AR-15 rifles — when he incited his MAGA mob to storm the United States Capitol.
- In fact, he even tried to get metal detectors near the White House shut down specifically so that potential insurrectionists would not have their weapons confiscated before they descended on Congress.
- Trump shrugged off concerns about armed political vigilantes swarming the grounds near the White House because he felt confident they weren’t there to hurt *him* personally.
- The president was desperate to accompany the mob to the Capitol and maybe even take to the floor of the House of Representatives himself.
- When the Secret Service insisted on taking Trump back to the White House after his rally on January 6, he apparently tried to grab the steering wheel of the armored SUV he was in. Then, as the head of his Secret Service detail tried to keep the president from taking the wheel, Trump grasped at the man’s throat.
- On the afternoon of January 6, Trump sent his infamous tweet castigating Mike Pence for lacking the “courage” to illegally overturn the election even though the president knew the mob was armed and actively seeking to hang the vice president.
- Trump had a habit of hurling dishes full of food across the dining room just outside the Oval Office in fits of rage over his election loss and his perception that various sycophants weren’t doing enough to carry out a coup d’etat.
- On January 6, Meadows was repeatedly found in a nearly unresponsive stupor — apparently bewildered over what was unfolding even as he was simultaneously enabling it.
- Both Rudy Giuliani and Mark Meadows sought presidential pardons.
- The January 6 Committee says it is aware of multiple examples of potential witnesses being contacted by Trump allies prior to testifying in what may amount to witness tampering.
Right after the hearing, Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland — a member of the bipartisan January 6 Committee — was asked this question:
“What actions can the Justice Department take at this point?”
Here’s some of what Raskin said in response:
“That’s a question better posed, obviously, to the Department of Justice.”
“Every hearing has involved testimony where there is a lot of evidence of potential crimes.”
“We know the Department of Justice is expert in that and it’s really their jurisdiction.”
“The questions need to be posed there and I know there’s a great hunger in the public for individual criminal accountability.”
Do you agree?
Add your name if you agree with Rep. Jamie Raskin of the bipartisan January 6 Committee that the hearings have revealed a lot of evidence of potential crimes and that individual criminal accountability is a question for the Department of Justice.
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- Robert Weissman, President of Public Citizen
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