1/6 Committee Digest

Country First presents the next edition of The Digest to highlight the important work of the 1/6 Committee. Our aim is to make this available to our members within 24 hours after each hearing.

In Case You Missed It: 

• Rep. Kinzinger appears on MSNBC's 'Morning Joe' to preview the Thursday hearing and announce Country First’s Defenders of Democracy endorsements. 
• Rep. Kinzinger appears on CNN 'Tonight with Jake Tapper,' speaking about the groundbreaking decision to subpoena former President Trump.

Here are the major developments from the committee: 

1/6 Committee Votes Unanimously to Subpoena Former President Trump

In a surprising turn of events on Thursday, the 1/6 Committee voted to subpoena former President Trump to testify under oath before the committee. In the expected final hearing, a bipartisan group of lawmakers came together in an effort to gather more evidence surrounding the vicious attack on the US Capitol. The subpoena has not been formally issued, but sources indicate the official subpoena will be delivered within days. 

The resolution was introduced by Vice Chairwoman Liz Cheney (R-WY) and passed unanimously after the first break of the hearing. This marks the first time that the 1/6 Committee has voted to issue a subpoena during a public hearing. The former President reacted to the subpoena, questioning why the committee waited so long. It is unclear whether the former President will comply with the subpoena. 

New Evidence Shows Secret Service was Aware of Threats of Violence Prior to Attack

In past hearings, members of the public were told the Secret Service was aware of threats made the morning of the attack. New evidence presented by the 1/6 Committee on Thursday corroborated prior hearings, proving that the Secret Service was aware of the potential and probability of violence on January 6, 2021, but did not act to increase security that day. In newly revealed text messages, the agents knew there were weapons, including firearms, in the crowd on January 6th. 

In an email from December 26, 2020, Secret Service members were alerted to a threat made by a far-right group known as the Proud Boys. The email included knowledge of a probable threat of violence large enough to overwhelm the US Capitol Police. One agent described the day before the attack as, "Calm before the storm I assume." As reported earlier, texts sent from Secret Service agents were deleted. The 1/6 Committee is still working to recover those messages. 

Not only was the Secret Service privy to activity in the days leading up to January 6th, they had knowledge about ballistics helmets, weapons, and other gear in the crowd on the 6th. Further, Trump requested that they remove the metal detectors during the event so that those who were armed could be let into the rally. Many of the people who came to the rally on January 6th were ready for violence. The Secret Service knew all of this, and Trump did, too.

Pelosi, Schumer, Shown Pleading with Police, Governors, and Other Leaders to Help Subdue the Insurrection

One of the most asked questions was answered by the 1/6 Committee yesterday: Speaker Pelosi DID, in fact, try to fortify the US Capitol on the day of the attack. Video shot by Pelosi’s daughter shows Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and other top democrats attempting to regain control of the Capitol. In the newly released footage, Speaker Pelosi is seen calling governors, the acting Attorney General, the acting Secretary of Defense, and other top government officials pleading with them to deploy law enforcement and military personnel to the Capitol. 

While other members of Congress, like Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO), can be seen running to a secure location to flee the violent mob he earlier egged on, Speaker Pelosi, Majority Leader Schumer, and others can be seen calmly but urgently asking for assistance. Committee member Jamie Raskin commented on the footage: "As the president watched the bloody attack unfold on Fox News from his dining room, members of Congress and other government officials stepped into the gigantic leadership void created by the president’s chilling and steady passivity that day."

Then, later that evening, the footage shows the relief congressional leaders felt as they received the news that they would be able to continue to count the electoral votes that night. 

Trump and Allies Planned to Declare Victory Before Election

A memo obtained from the National Archives and a video deposition confirm the former President's plan to declare victory before voting even started. For weeks before voting started, Trump’s closest allies like Steve Bannon, Roger Stone, and Tom Fitton had "advanced knowledge" of Trump’s decision to declare victory. "What Trump is going to do is declare victory…, but that doesn’t mean he is the winner. He’s just going to say he is the winner," Bannon said in October. 

In a video interview with Trump campaign advisor Brad Parscale, we learned the former President planned to declare victory regardless of the outcome as early as July. In fact, the 1/6 Committee presented evidence showing Trump and Tom Fitton, the president of Judicial Watch, worked on a speech to be given on election night declaring victory. The former President intended to stay in power no matter the outcome. 

Former Transportation Secretary Says January 6th was "Shocking"

As a myriad of Trump cabinet officials and other top aides resigned after January 6th, one of the most notable was Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, who is married to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. Chao met with the 1/6 Committee to speak about her decision to leave the Trump Administration following the attack. She called the attack on the Capitol "shocking," adding that the attempted coup was "not something [she] could put aside."

"And at a particular point, the events were such that it was impossible for me to continue, given my personal values and my philosophy. I came as an immigrant to this country. I believe in this country. I believe in the peaceful transfer of power. I believe in democracy. And so I was — it was a decision that I made on my own," she said. 

Trump’s Allies Were In Contact, Amplifying Violence by Trump Base Prior to January 6, Committee Reveals

The 1/6 Committee revealed previously unseen communications between Trump allies and top aides prior to the attack. Former President Trump's communications advisor, Jason Miller, touted his ability to rally the Trump base, texting then Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, "I got the base FIRED UP," taking credit for amplifying the violent messages posted on a pro-Trump website, TheDonald.Win. 

On the website, calls for violence streamed in, calling for "patriots" to gather with weapons and seemingly threaten members of Congress to keep Trump in power. One message said, "Our 'lawmakers' in Congress can leave one of two ways: 1) in a body bag 2) after rightfully certifying Trump the winner."

The website was shared by Mr. Miller, indicating he was aware of the violent themes circulating in the days leading to January 6th. 

Trump Knew He lost Despite Claiming Victory 

While former President Trump was publicly claiming victory, and raising money to fight "election fraud," he was privately complaining of his loss and making decisions knowing he had lost. In an interview with General Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Milley recalled a time when the former President said something to the effect of, "we lost, we need to let that issue go to the next guy." Communications Director Alyssa Farah Griffin corroborated Milley, recalling an interaction in the Oval Office after the election. According to Farah Griffin, Trump said, "Can you believe I lost to this f***ing guy?"

Trump’s order to rapidly withdraw US troops from Afghanistan and Somalia shortly after the 2020 election came under fire from Rep. Adam Kinzinger on Thursday: "He disregarded concerns about the consequences for fragile governments on the front lines of the fight against [the Islamic State] and al-Qaeda terrorists," Kinzinger said. "Knowing he was leaving office, he acted immediately and signed this order on November 11th, which would have required the immediate withdrawal of troops from Somalia and Afghanistan, all to be complete before the Biden inauguration on January 20th." General Milley called the order "potentially dangerous" and did not think it was possible. Lt. General Keith Kellogg called the order a "tremendous disservice to [the] nation."

Country First is proud to release The Weekly Digest with important updates on the 1/6 Committee's investigation of the Capitol attack. If you would like to help contribute content to this newsletter, please e-mail [email protected].