A new Jan. 6 hearing, the first in months

The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol will hold another hearing – and maybe its final one – this Thursday.
 
With fewer than three months left in the year, the committee plans to resume its public-facing work and build on its previous series of hearings about the insurrection held this summer. All of the panel’s work will culminate in a final report by the end of the year. After the select committee has the final word on its investigation, it’s expected to dissolve, per its own rules.
 
Here’s a brief summary of what to expect in the next hearing.

This newsletter was compiled by Joshua Barajas. Correspondent Lisa Desjardins contributed.

The next Jan. 6 hearing will take place at 1 p.m. EDT on Thursday, Oct. 13.

PBS NewsHour digital anchor Nicole Ellis will host a conversation with White House correspondent Laura Barrón-López shortly before the hearing, leading up to our special coverage, hosted by NewsHour correspondent Amna Nawaz.

Check your local listings to find the PBS station near you, or watch online here or in the player below.

You can also follow the PBS NewsHour’s live coverage on YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, TikTok and see highlights on our Instagram.
 
For a recap of the committee’s work thus far, watch highlights of the key moments from each of this summer’s eight hearings.
 
WHAT TO EXPECT

The latest hearing was originally scheduled for late last month, but the committee decided to postpone it to a later date as Hurricane Ian spun toward Florida.
 
Currently, there are no plans for live witnesses like in past Jan. 6 hearings. Thursday’s session is also expected to be the panel’s last before the midterm elections, which are less than a month away. As of publication time, the committee has yet to announce a theme to the proceedings.
 
There are a number of items the committee may address in this next hearing:
 
New interview footage? The committee has interviewed more witnesses since the last hearing in July, including Virginia “Ginni” Thomas, the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Late last month, the conservative activist fielded questions from the panel behind closed doors. It’s not immediately clear if Thomas’ testimony will appear in Thursday’s hearing, but committee member Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., told MSNBC that the hourslong interview wasn’t videotaped. If Thomas’ testimony is featured in the next hearing, it would most likely be shown through a transcript.
 
A looming, lingering question. As first reported by NBC News this week, the Secret Service has handed over to congressional investigators more than 1 million electronic communications – emails, radio transmissions, Microsoft Teams chats, but not texts, related to the events of Jan. 6. The committee previously subpoenaed the federal law enforcement agency after it learned that text messages from Jan. 5 to Jan. 6, 2021, were deleted “as part of a device-replacement program.” It’s not yet known whether the committee will reveal any of the messages’ content in Thursday’s hearing.
 
Testimony from former President Donald Trump or former Vice President Mike Pence? In short, the committee is running out of time to pursue testimony from either person, nor have members signaled that these are options they will seek. Part of that calculation might be the potential legal hurdles. Lofgren told the PBS NewsHour last month that, with Pence, “There isn’t time for the litigation to run its course between now and the end of this Congress.”

When will we see the final report? The overwhelming expectation for the public document is by the end of December, alongside the committee’s recommendations for legislative reforms.