Today we witnessed the January 6th Committee expose an organized MAGA plot to undermine the democratic process. The January 6th hearings may have been on a three-month hiatus, but the Committee has been working overtime behind the scenes to piece together missing texts from the Secret Service, uncover details about the false elector scheme, and investigate voting machine breaches initiated by Trump allies. In the ninth and possibly final televised hearing, the Jan. 6 Committee voted to subpoena former President Donald Trump.
Over the course of these hearings, we’ve seen how Trump and his MAGA allies illegally pressured state and local election officials, former Vice President Mike Pence, state legislatures, election workers, and even the Department of Justice to help overturn an election they knew they lost. We watched as they knowingly sent an armed mob to the Capitol to stop the peaceful transfer of power while in contact with extremist groups, and involved Republican members in the plot. Today, Trump and his allies continue spreading the exact same election lies in an effort to undermine free and fair elections ahead of the midterm elections.
Axios: Jan. 6 Committee Unanimously Votes To Subpoena Trump. “Members of the Jan. 6 select committee unanimously voted on Thursday to issue a subpoena to former President Trump. Why it matters: The 9-0 vote came during Thursday’s televised meeting aimed at making the case that Trump was the central antagonist in the attack and in preceding efforts to overturn the election. Between the lines: Trump has been the central figure of the committee’s investigation, which has focused on proving his culpability for what happened on Jan. 6.” [Axios, 10/13/22]
Wall Street Journal: Trump Knew He Lost the Election, Aides Testify. “Despite his claims, former President Donald Trump privately conceded he lost to Joe Biden, according to video testimony from former administration officials. He also took dramatic steps to potentially withdraw troops from Afghanistan, steps that the committee showed he knew he had lost and wanted to make the move before incoming President Joe Biden took office.” [Wall Street Journal, 10/13/22]
The Hill: Secret Service Messages Show They Knew Crowd Outside Jan. 6 Rally Was Armed. “The House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol on Thursday publicized freshly obtained communications from the Secret Service showing agents were aware of concerns about violence leading up to that day and that agents knew some in the crowd were armed.‘Secret Service had advanced information more than 10 days beforehand regarding the Proud Boys planning for Jan. 6,’ Schiff said. ‘We know now of course that the Proud Boys and others did lead the assault on our Capitol building.’” [The Hill, 10/13/22]
The Hill: Cassidy Hutchinson: Trump Told Meadows ‘This Is Embarrassing,’ ‘I Don’t Want People To Know That We Lost’. “Former President Trump told his then-chief of staff ‘this is embarrassing,’ and ‘I don’t want people to know that we lost,’ after the Supreme Court ruled against him on a key case about the 2020 election, former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson told the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.” [The Hill, 10/13/22]
CNN: 3 Takeaways From The January 6 Hearing. “The committee’s hearing used new records obtained from the Secret Service and new deposition footage from former Trump Cabinet secretaries and White House officials to bolster their argument that Trump still remains a danger to democracy heading into the 2024 election. Here are the takeaways from the committee’s latest January 6 hearing: Hutchinson says Trump knew he lost […] Committee reveals new info obtained from Secret Service […] Trump planned to declare victory no matter what the election results were.” [CNN, 10/13/22]
New York Times: Jan. 6 Panel Votes to Subpoena Trump, Setting Up Court Fight. “‘He is required to answer for his actions,’ said Representative Bennie Thompson, Democrat of Mississippi and the chairman of the committee, at the end of what was possibly the panel’s final public session. ‘He is required to answer to those police officers who put their lives and bodies on the line to defend our democracy.’ The vote emerged after the committee presented a sweeping summation of its case against Mr. Trump, including more details about his state of mind and his central role in the effort to overturn the 2020 election.” [New York Times, 10/13/22]
USA Today: Secret Service Had a 10-Day Warning On Proud Boys’ Plans. “ The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack presented evidence Thursday that the Secret Service knew before the assault on the Capitol that some in the crowd at Donald Trump’s rally had guns. Secret Service members exchanged texts on the morning of Jan. 6, 2021 warning each other of weapons spotted among supporters of President Donald Trump and the threat of violence at the Capitol, according to the committee, which is holding its ninth public hearing.” [USA Today, 10/13/22]
Daily Beast: Jan. 6 Panel Lays Out Trump’s Secret Plan to Stay in Power. “Donald Trump long plotted to assert he won the 2020 presidential election even if he clearly lost—an impending disaster for the nation’s democracy that was known by his campaign staff and some White House aides, the Jan. 6 Committee revealed on Thursday. […] Donald Trump knew he lost,” Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-MS) said at the top of the hearing. Despite this knowledge, Donald Trump went to court to contest this election and he lost in court. Trump continued to pull out all the stops in his attempt to stay in power.’” [The Daily Beast, 10/13/22]
