President Donald Trump speaks during a rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan.Photo: Kamil Krzaczynski/Getty Images
“He must be held accountable,” Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson said in Thursday’s hearing, noting that there was historic precedent for seeking a president’s testimony.
“We recognize that a subpoena to a former president is an … extraordinary action,” Thompson said, adding that the “stakes are so high” that the committee would hold its vote in public view.
Experts say it is unlikely Trump would testify, though the dramatic moment in Thursday’s hearing could still have legal fallout: if Trump does not testify, the committee would vote on whether to hold Trump in contempt of court, and could then send the matter on to the Department of Justice.
The hearings began on June 9 and featured new revelations about the events leading up to the attacks and how the former president and his allies responded.
The committee has heard testimony from former White House aides and Trump family members about Trump’s anger at having lost the election, and his behavior on the morning of Jan. 6, 2021. The committee has also heard testimony fromJustice Department officialswho detailed Trump’s unrelenting pressure to find evidence of widespread fraud in the 2020 presidential election.
Trump has long maintained the investigation into his conduct around Jan. 6 is politically motivated and he did nothing wrong. He alternately praised the mob of his supporters when they stormed the U.S. Capitol and told them to be peaceful.
He later warned, “These are the things and events that happen …. Remember this day forever!”
Elsewhere in Thursday’s hearing (which is expected to be the final public hearing in the investigation), the committee aired never-before-seen footage of lawmakers being evacuated as Trump supporters breached the Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021.
While the committee’s investigation wasn’t a criminal one, members of the committee have said the hearings would help determine exactly what sorts of charges could arise.
Speaking to CNN’s Jake Tapper in December, Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger — an anti-Trump Republican serving on the committee — said he wasn’t prepared to say whether he believes the former president committed a crime, but that the House committee should have “a pretty good idea” once its probe is over.
The congressman continued then: “Nobody is above the law. And if the president knowingly allowed what happened on Jan. 6 to happen and, in fact, was giddy about it, and that violates a criminal statute, he needs to be held accountable for that.”
source: people.com
