Jan. 6 Committee Votes to Refer Trump for Criminal Charges – Rolling Stone

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The January 6 committee announced on Monday that it will refer former President Donald Trump for criminal charges for his role in the attack on the Capitol as Congress certified the 2020 election.

The referral, which was expected, came at the committee’s final meeting before releasing its final investigation report into the events of January 6, 2021 and the larger effort to keep Trump in office despite an easy defeat to Joe Biden. The committee said it will release the report on Wednesday.

Congress asking the Justice Department to criminally charge a former president is a historic move that speaks to the scale of evidence the committee gathered against Trump, whom they placed at the center of a scheme to overthrow the election. laid by Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) detailed the referrals, noting that the committee is looking to bring charges against Trump for obstructing an official proceeding; conspiracy to defraud the United States government; knowingly and willfully making a false statement to the federal government; and inciting, aiding, or participating in insurrection.

“We understand the gravity of each referral we make today just as we understand the scale of the crime against democracy we described in our report,” Raskin concluded. “But we have gone where the facts and the law take us and they inevitably lead here.”

Raskin: “We understand the seriousness of every referral we make today. Just as we understand the scale of the crime against democracy that we described in our report. We went where the facts and the law led us and inevitably, they leading us here.” pic.twitter.com/3nED07aUfm

— nikki mccann ramrez (@NikkiMcR) December 19, 2022

It was later reported that the committee would also refer attorneys John Eastman and Kenneth Chesebro, along with former DOJ official Jeffrey Clark, for obstructing an official proceeding. Eastman, Chesebro, and Clark will also be referred for conspiracy to defraud the US government, as will Rudy Giuliani and former Trump Chief of Staff Mark Meadows. Eastman and Chesebro will be referred for conspiracy to make false statements charges, as well.

The committee investigated the Capitol riot for 18 months and interviewed more than 1,000 witnesses. It subpoenaed Trump in October, but the former president has yet to comply. The committee previously referred former Trump adviser Steve Bannon for criminal charges for refusing to comply with a subpoena. Bannon was charged with contempt of Congress in November, and convicted this July before being sentenced to four months in prison. Leveling charges against a former president is a more serious proposition, however, especially considering the charges at issue are more complicated than contempt of Congress. Editor’s pick

It is now up to the Justice Department, which is conducting its own investigation into the events of January 6 and the effort to overturn the election, to weigh the evidence and decide whether to do so. The January 6 committee certainly believes they should. “There is evidence that Donald Trump committed criminal offenses in his effort to overturn the 2020 election,” committee member Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) wrote on Sunday. “He tried to interfere in a joint session. Officials were forced to look for votes that didn’t exist. And set a bloodthirsty mob in the Capitol. If that’s not criminal, nothing is.”

Trump was not amused, raging against the Truth Social committee. Trending

“The Fake charges made by the highly partisan Unselect Committee on January 6 have been submitted, prosecuted, and tried in the form of Impeachment Hoax #2,” he added. “I won convincingly. Double Jeopardy anyone!”

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