The January 6th Committee
The United States House Select Committee on the January 6th insurrection is one of the most important investigations in world history. Its goal is to find those responsible for the terrorist attack on January 6, 2021 and make sure that accountability is made. We know that Trump and his allies are complicit in trying their failed coup d'état to try to overthrow the government, steal the 2020 election, and end democracy as we know it. The committee was created on July 1, 2021, with the Chair being Democratic Bennie Thompson and Republican Liz Cheney as the Vice-Chair. There are 9 seats on the committee with 7 Democrats and 2 Republicans. The attack on the U.S. Capitol was evil, brutal, and obscene. Also, it was coordinated by not only Trump and his allies. The Proud Boys, the Oath Keepers, and other extremists worked in a coordinated fashion to try to terrorize lawmakers in getting democracy eliminated from society. From the start of the committee to the time of June 12, 2022, committee members announced that it has enough evidence to recommend that the Justice Department should indict Trump. Therefore, we have seen great developments. By May 2022, the committee had interviewed more than 1,000 people. Some members of Trump's inner circle cooperated with the committee, while others defied it. Steve Bannon and Peter Navarro were indicted by federal grand juries for refusing to testify. Congress also held Mark Meadows and Dan Scavino in criminal contempt for refusing to testify, but the Justice Department said it would not prosecute them. Recently, the bombshell testimonies of Cassidy Hutchinson and other people prove that Donald Trump's attack on democracy has no place anywhere in the Universe. Like Bree Newsome has mentioned:
"...Like I’m not about to sit here & spend 2 more years explaining why the government should be doing something more than allowing deadly viruses to rampage the population, pushing homeless people into the deserts to die & sitting on their hands as the earth becomes unlivable..."
The Aftermath of the 2020 Presidential Election and the Prelude
The 2020 Presidential election was the most important American election in human history. It caused many changes in society, and it resulted in one of the most corrupt Presidents in American history having only one term of office. In 2020, I was 37 years old. At the end of the election, Joe Biden won both the popular vote and the electoral votes. Joe Biden had 51.31 percent of the popular vote (with over 81 million people who voted for him), Donald Trump had 46.86 percent of the popular vote (with over 74 million votes), Jo Jorgensen of the Libertarian Party had 1.18 percent of the popular vote (with over 1.8 million votes), and Howard Hawkins of the Green Party has 0.26 percent of the popular vote with over 400,000 votes. The election results didn't end on November 3, 2020. There was no clear winner for many days. There were late vote counts in Pennsylvania, Arizona, and Georgia. From the start, Trump falsely accused people of using massive voting fraud. Far right-wing extremists and pro-Trump individuals protested the election results in Arizona in Phoenix, Detroit, and Philadelphia. On November 7, 2020, all major TV networks (even FOX News) said that Biden won the election and is the President-elect. This was when Trump's legal team fought this outcome until January 2021. People celebrated nationwide over Biden's victory. During the summer of 2020, I had a dream of people cheering in the streets of America in real life. So, I knew that Biden would win the election of 2020. Trump refused to concede, so the legal battle continued. Trump's cultist followers protested in state capitols nationwide. Trump led lawsuits, Supreme Court cases, and other methods in trying to steal the election from November 2020 to January 2021. The U.S. Supreme Court (on December 11, 2020) issued an unsigned order declining to hear Texas v. Pennsylvania on the basis that Texas lacks standing under Article Three of the Constitution: "Texas has not demonstrated a judicially cognizable interest in the manner in which another State conducts its elections." Justice Alito, joined by Justice Clarence Thomas, partially dissents, writing that the Court is duty-bound to hear the case, referencing Arizona v. California: "I would therefore grant the motion to file the bill of complaint but would not grant other relief, and I express no view on any other issue."
By January 2, 2021, Republican Senators Mitt Romney of Utah, Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska (including other Republican Senators) announced that they will vote to accept the Biden electors. Romney explains that ,"Were Congress to actually reject state electors, partisans would inevitably demand the same any time their candidate had lost ... Congress, not voters in the respective states, would choose our presidents." During January 2-3, 2021, in an hour-long conference call, Trump pressures Raffensperger to look into the president's allegations of voter fraud in Georgia, asking him to "find 11,780 votes, which is one more than [the 11,779 vote margin of defeat] we have, because we won the state." Trump then tweets about the call on the following day, stating that Raffensperger "has no clue!" Raffensperger then tweets back, "Respectfully, President Trump: What you're saying is not true. The truth will come out." Legal analysts believe that Trump's demands during the call might have violated state and federal laws. On January 5, Trump tweets in the morning that Mike Pence can overturn the election results, which is false. On January 5 also, Trump supporters start to converge at D.C. to protest the electoral vote count. Trump summoned them to the U.S. Capitol to fight the peaceful transition of power. Six people are arrested during afternoon demonstrations in Freedom Plaza. Donald Trump failed to get government, secretaries of state, and state legislatures to nullify results in various states.
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The January 6th Terrorist and Insurrection Attack on America (at the U.S. Capitol in 2022)
In our time, we have more facts about what took place in a chronological fashion. This was the worst terror attack on the U.S. Capitol in over 100 years. The terrorists wanted to overthrow the U.S. government by trying to disrupt the Electoral vote count in an attempted coup d'état. Those involved in this attempted coup d'état are Trump, many members of the Oath Keepers, many members of the Proud Boys, far right extremists, many Trump supporters, other racists, anti-Semites, etc. These criminals caused over $30 million in damage. As early as December of 2020, Congressman Mo Brooks (R-AL) organized three White House meetings between Trump, Republican lawmakers, and others. Attendees included Trump, Vice President Pence, representatives Jody Hice (R-GA), Jim Jordan (R-OH), and Andy Biggs (R-AZ), representative-elect Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), and members of the Trump legal team. The purpose of the meetings was to strategize about how Congress could overturn the election results in January. December 18, 2020 was when Trump wanted a rally before the January 6 Congressional vote count to challenge election results. Trump tweeted, "Big protest in D.C. on January 6th. Be there, will be wild!" This was called the "March to Save America." On January 1, 2021, they obtained a permit with an estimated attendance of 5,000 for a first amendment rally "March for Trump." The "March to Save America" and rally that preceded the riots at the Capitol were initially organized by Women for America First, a 501(c)(4) organization chaired by Amy Kremer, co-founder of Women for Trump. Trump wanted to be at the hate rally. Trump wanted to march to Capitol along with his supporters. Far right person Ali Alexander also organized the rally. Alexander communicated with Roger Stone. Tons of people called for storming the Capitol. The intelligence community knew of these warnings weeks and months before January 6th. The media reported on the warnings regularly too. Following clashes with Washington, D.C. police during protests on December 12, 2020, the Proud Boys and other far-right groups turned against supporting law enforcement. At least one group, Stop the Steal, posted on December 23, 2020, its plans to occupy the Capitol with promises to "escalate" if opposed by police.
The rally was funded by many far-right groups including Alex Jones. On December 1, 2020, a Georgia election official publicly warned, "Stop inspiring people to commit potential acts of violence. Someone's going to get hurt. Someone's going to get shot. Someone's going to get killed." A January 2 article by The Daily Beast reported protesters were discussing bringing guns to the District, breaking into federal buildings, and attacking law enforcement. People sent warnings to the FBI about possible violence too. At 7:40 p.m. on January 5, someone wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt, a mask, and Nike Air Max Speed Turf sneakers was filmed carrying a bag through a residential neighborhood on South Capitol Street. At 7:52 p.m., the individual was recorded sitting on a bench outside the DNC; the next day, a pipe bomb was discovered there, placed under a bush. In the footage, the suspect appears to zip a bag, stand and walk away. At 8:14, they were filmed in an alley near the RNC, where a second pipe bomb was found the following day. They placed both bombs within a few blocks of the Capitol. The FBI distributed photos and video of the person who they believe planted the devices and offered an initial reward of up to $50,000 for information; by the end of the month, the FBI raised it to $75,000. The reward has since been set at $100,000. Vice President-elect Kamala Harris was inside the DNC building when the pipe bomb was discovered outside the facility. Both pipe bombs were fully functional and were disabled by authorities. The incident diverted attention and resources away from the Capitol Riot, which quickly spiraled out of control.
The insurrection started on January 6 during the Trump "Save America" rally. It started on the Ellipse within the National Mall just south of the White House. The permit granted to Women for America First showed their first amendment rally "March for Trump" with speeches running from 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and an additional hour for the conclusion of the rally and dispersal of participants. Trump supporters gathered on the Ellipse to hear speeches from Trump, Rudy Giuliani, and others, such as Chapman University School of Law professor John C. Eastman, who spoke, at least in part, based on his memorandums, which have been described as an instruction manual for a coup d'état. In a court filing in February, a member of the Oath Keepers claimed she had acted as "security" at the rally, and was provided with a "VIP pass to the rally where she met with Secret Service agents". The U.S. Secret Service denied that any private citizens had coordinated with it to provide security on January 6. On February 22, she changed her story and said she interacted with the Secret Service only as she passed through the security check before the rally. Mo Brooks (R-AL) was a featured speaker at the rally and spoke around 9 a.m., where he said, "Today is the day American patriots start taking down names and kicking a___" And later, "Are you willing to do what it takes to fight for America? Louder! Will you fight for America?" More people spoke like Donald Jr. and Eric Trump. Rudy Giuliani lied about voting machines and said that people should have "trial by combat" at 10:50 am. By 10:58 am, a Proud Boys contingent left the rally and marched to the Capitol building. Trump gave his speech at 11:58 am. behind a bulletproof shield. He said that he will never concede the election. He wanted Pence to overturn the election. Pence agreed that Biden won the election. Trump called for his supporters to "walk down to the Capitol" to "cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women and we're probably not going to be cheering so much for some of them." He told the crowd that he would be with them, but he ultimately did not go to the Capitol. During Trump's speech, his supporters chanted "Take the Capitol," "Taking the Capitol right now," "Invade the Capitol," "Storm the Capitol" and "Fight for Trump." The New York Times placed the fall of the first barriers at 1:03 p.m. Before Trump had finished speaking at 1:12 p.m., an estimated eight thousand supporters had already begun moving up the National Mall, with some shouting that they were storming the Capitol. After completing his speech, Trump went back to the White House on the presidential motorcade, arriving at 1:19 p.m. At some point afterward, Trump went to the Oval Office and started watching news coverage of the attack.
The attack on the U.S. Capitol existed in phases. The Proud Boys started to march to the U.S. Capitol as early as 10:58 am. Speeches started at 9 am. The Proud Boys used walkie-talkies for communication. By 12:30 pm, a crowd of about 300 people were in the east of the Capitol. Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO), a leader of the group of lawmakers who vowed to challenge the Electoral College vote, greeted these protesters with a raised fist as he passed by on his way to the Congress joint session in the early afternoon.
Around 12:45 p.m., a bomb was discovered next to a building containing Republican National Committee (RNC) offices by a woman using the shared alleyway to access her apartment building's laundry room. She alerted RNC security, which investigated and summoned law enforcement; U.S. Capitol Police, FBI agents and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) all responded to the RNC bomb.
About thirty minutes later, while officers were still responding at the RNC, they were informed a second pipe bomb had been discovered under a bush at the Democratic National Committee (DNC) headquarters. Vice President-elect Kamala Harris was inside the DNC headquarters at the time the pipe bomb was discovered. Capitol Police began investigating the DNC pipe bomb at 1:07 p.m., and Harris was evacuated at approximately 1:14 p.m. The devices were of a similar design – about one foot in length. They were safely detonated by bomb squads; the pipe bomb at the RNC was neutralized at 3:33 p.m. and the pipe bomb at the DNC was neutralized at 4:36 p.m., according to a Capitol Police timeline. The bombs were fully functional and constructed of galvanized steel pipes, homemade black powder, and kitchen timers. The FBI stated that the bombs "were viable and could have been detonated, resulting in serious injury or death." Some believe that the bombs were placed to draw police away from protecting the U.S. Capitol. The Inspector General of the Capitol Police later concluded, "If those pipe bombs were intended to be diversion... it worked." Representative Tim Ryan (D–OH) echoed the sentiment in a virtual news conference on January 11, saying, "[W]e do believe there was some level of coordination ... because of the pipe bombs ... that immediately drew attention away from the breach that was happening."
So, the Proud Boys continent came to the west perimeter of the U.S. Capitol. The Capitol was only protected by a small number of police in front of a temporary fence. Other Trump supporters came. A Proud Boy named Joe Biggs rushed the fences and fought the police. By 12:53 pm, the terrorists stormed the barriers and came onto the Capitol grounds for the first time. The police struggled to contain the terrorists. Meanwhile, at The Ellipse, Oath Keepers wearing black hoodies with prominent logos left the rally at 12:52 and changed into Army Combat Uniforms, with helmets, on their way to the Capitol. At about 1 pm, hundreds of Trump supporters fight a second thin line of officers. The crowd ran through barriers. Some members of the mob spray officers with chemical agents and hit them with lead pipes. Many of them walked up to the external stairways. Some resorted to ropes and makeshift ladders. Police blocked the entrance to a tunnel at the lower west terrace where rioters waged a three-hour fight to enter. To gain access to the Capitol, several rioters scaled the west wall. Representative Zoe Lofgren (D–CA), aware that rioters had reached the Capitol steps, could not reach Steven Sund by phone. House Sergeant-at-Arms Paul D. Irving told Lofgren the doors to the Capitol were locked and "nobody can get in."
Telephone logs released by USCP show that Sund had been coordinating additional resources from various agencies. Sund's first call was to the D.C. Metropolitan Police, who arrived within 15 minutes. Sund called Irving and Stenger at 12:58 and asked them for an emergency declaration required to call in the National Guard; they both told Sund they would "run it up the chain," but formal approval would arrive more than one hour later. Trump finished his speech at about 1:12 pm. He comes to the White House despite wanting to march with the protesters to the Capitol. At 1:50 p.m., the on-scene MPD incident commander declared a riot. At 1:58, Capitol Police officers removed a barricade on the northeast side of the Capitol allowing hundreds of protestors to stream onto the grounds. Just before 2pm., the terrorists reached the doors and windows of the Capitol. They try to break in. Around 2:11 pm, a group of rioters used a piece of lumber to break through a window and began climbing into the building moments later. At 2:12, a Proud Boy seized a Capitol Police plastic shield and used it to smash through another window; by 2:13, the Capitol was officially breached, and the growing mob streamed into the National Statuary Hall. Although most of the Capitol's windows had been reinforced, the rioters targeted those that remained as single-pane glass and could be broken easily.
As rioters began to invade the Capitol and other nearby buildings, some buildings in the complex were evacuated. Outside, the mob punctured the tires of a police vehicle and left a note saying "PELOSI IS SATAN" on the windshield. Politico reported some rioters briefly showing their police badges or military identification to law enforcement as they approached the Capitol, expecting to be let inside; a Capitol Police officer told BuzzFeed News that one rioter had told him "[w]e're doing this for you" as he flashed a badge. Concerned about the approaching mob, Representative Maxine Waters (D-CA) called Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund, who was not on Capitol grounds but at the police department's headquarters. When asked what the Capitol Police were doing to stop the rioters, Sund told Waters, "We're doing the best we can" before the line went dead. Federal officials estimate that about ten thousand rioters entered the Capitol grounds, and the Secret Service and FBI have estimated that about 1,200 breached the building. Many officers pleaded for backup. Many of the terrorists screamed words like Fight, Stop the Steal, Fight for Trump. Many terrorists had body armor and various technology. Some had helmets, military-style vests, and plastic handcuffs. Some had guns, knives, axes, chemical sprayers, etc. It is illegal to brandish weapons at the U.S. Capitol. Some of the terrorists called one black U.S. Capitol police officer the n word.
Some of the rioters carried American flags, Confederate battle flags, or Nazi emblems. For the first time in U.S. history, a Confederate battle flag was displayed inside the Capitol. Christian imagery and rhetoric were prevalent, with rioters carrying crosses and signs saying, "Jesus Saves", and "Jesus 2020". On the National Mall, rioters chanted, "Christ is king". One rioter carried a Christian flag. Rioters referred to the neo-fascist Proud Boys as "God's warriors." These were mainly neo-charismatic, prophetic Christians who believed that Trump was prophesied to remain in power and anointed by God to save Christian Americans from religious persecution. For the record, these terrorists have nothing to do with Jesus Christ or Christianity. Jesus said explicitly My Kingdom is not of this word meaning the separation of church and state is absolute. We don't battle against people using terrorism. We use voluntary, peaceful expressions of our faith. To advance violence against innocent people, to vandalize innocent property, to promote lies about an election, and to glorify racial hatred are acts contrary to the true Christianity of the Lord Jesus Christ. Congress had to adjourn to make sure that people were safe. Congressional staffers removed the Electoral College certificates from the Senate floor as it was evacuated. At this time, Paul Gosar endorsed by Ted Cruz wanted to object to Arizona's electoral votes.
While the debate over the Arizona electoral college votes continued, an armed police officer entered the Senate chamber, positioned facing the back entrance of the chamber. Pence handed the floor from Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) to Senator James Lankford (R-OK). Moments later, Pence and his family were escorted out by Secret Service members. As rioters began to climb the stairs toward the Senate chamber, a lone Capitol Police officer, Eugene Goodman, worked to slow the mob down as he radioed that they had reached the second floor. Realizing he was steps away from the still-unsealed Senate chamber doors, Goodman then shoved a rioter, leading the mob as he ran into a line of reinforcements. Banging could be heard from outside as rioters attempted to breach the doors. As Lankford was speaking, the Senate was gaveled into recess, and the doors were locked at 2:15. A minute later, the rioters reached the gallery outside the chamber. A police officer carrying a semi-automatic weapon appeared on the floor and stood between then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and then-Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY). Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) exasperatedly threw up his hands and directly criticized several fellow Republicans who were challenging President-elect Biden's electoral votes, yelling to them, "This is what you've gotten, guys." Several members of Senate parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough's staff carried the boxes of Electoral College votes and documentation out of the chamber to hidden safe rooms within the building. Trump does nothing at this time and lied to say that Pence has the power to overturn the election. At 2:24 pm, Trump tweeted that Pence "didn't have the courage to do what should have been done." Later, many Trump followers want to attack and hang Mike Pence. At least 3 rioters wanted to hang Mike Pence as a "traitor" outside the building. According to witnesses, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows told coworkers that Trump complained about Pence being escorted to safety and then stated something suggesting that Pence should be hanged. The buildings in the Complex were locked down. Capitol staff was asked to shelter in place. Lawmakers, aides, and staff hide in offices and closets. The terrorists ransacked the office of the Senate Parliamentarian. Aides to Mitch McConnell were barricaded in a room, just off a hallway. Trump wanted Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) to do more to block the counting of Biden's electoral votes.
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The terrorist mob took control of the chamber. Some men carried plastic handcuffs and were armed. Some raised fists on the Senate dais minutes after Pence left. Pence's wife Karen Pence, daughter Charlotte Pence Bond, and brother Greg Pence (a member of the House; R–IN) were in the Capitol at the time it was attacked. As Pence and his family were being escorted from the Senate chamber to a nearby hideaway, they came within a minute of being visible to rioters on a staircase only 100 feet (30 m) away. It was reportedly intended for Pence to be evacuated from the Capitol Complex entirely, but he refused to do so, saying that seeing his "20-car motorcade fleeing ... would only vindicate their insurrection." Senior White House official, Keith Kellogg, told Anthony Ornato why Pence would not be evacuated, “You can’t do that, Tony. Leave him where he’s at. He’s got a job to do. I know you guys too well. You’ll fly him to Alaska if you have a chance. Don’t do it.” Kellogg made it clear that Pence would stay, even if he needed to remain all night." Staff and reporters in the builders were taken by secure elevators to the basement and then to an underground bunker. Evacuees were redirected en route after the bunker was infiltrated by the terrorist mob. Sergeant-at-Arms of the Senate Michael C. Stenger accompanied a group of senators including Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Joe Manchin (D-WV) to a secure location in a Senate office building. Once safe, the lawmakers were "furious" with Stenger; Graham asked him, "How does this happen? How does this happen?" and added that they "[are] not going to be run out by a mob."
The House was recessed again by 2:30 pm. Many federal law enforcement officers drew their guns to try to stop the mob. The House was barricaded with furniture. The chief of staff for Representative Ayanna Pressley (D–MA) claimed that when the congresswoman and staff barricaded themselves in her office and attempted to call for help with duress buttons that they had previously used during safety drills, "[e]very panic button in my office had been torn out – the whole unit." Subsequently, a House Administration Committee emailed Greg Sargent of The Washington Post claiming the missing buttons were likely due to a "clerical screw-up" resulting from Pressley's swapping offices. Representative Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) tweeted that there were no duress buttons in his office, but acknowledged he was only three days into his term and they were installed a week later. During the riots, Representative Lauren Boebert (R-CO) posted information about the police response and the location of members on Twitter, including the fact that Speaker Pelosi had been taken out of the chamber, for which she has faced calls to resign for endangering members.
Capitol Police Chief Sund first requested assistance from the D.C. National Guard (DCNG) at 1:49 p.m. At 2:22 p.m. D.C. officials also requested National Guard deployment in a conference call with Pentagon leaders. After DoD refused to send immediate assistance, D.C. Mayor Bowser contacted the Public Safety Secretary of Virginia, Brian Moran, who immediately dispatched Virginia State Police to the District. At 2:49 p.m., the Governor of Virginia activated all available assets including the Virginia National Guard to aid the U.S. Capitol; the authorization from DoD required for legal deployment was not granted. By 3:10 p.m., police from Fairfax County, Virginia, were dispatched to the District, and began arriving at 3:15 p.m.
Multiple rioters, using the cameras on their cell phones, documented themselves occupying the Capitol and the offices of various representatives, vandalizing the offices of Speaker Pelosi, accessing secure computers, and stealing a laptop. The terrorists involved also involved members of Stop the Steal movement, the Three Percenters, the Croyper Army, neo-Confederates, Holocaust deniers, and other people.
During the riot, Chief of Staff Mark Meadows received messages from Donald Trump Jr., as well as Fox News hosts Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham, and Brian Kilmeade, urging him to tell Trump to condemn the mayhem at the risk of his reputation. By 3:10, pressure was building on Trump to condemn supporters engaged in the riots. By 3:25, Trump tweeted, "I am asking for everyone at the U.S. Capitol to remain peaceful. No violence! Remember, WE are the Party of Law & Order – respect the Law and our great men and women in Blue", but he refused to call upon the crowd to disperse. By 3:40, several congressional Republicans called upon Trump to more specifically condemn violence and to tell his supporters to end the occupation of the Capitol.
By 3:50 p.m., White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said the National Guard and "other federal protective services" had been deployed. At 4:06 p.m. on national television, President-elect Biden called for President Trump to end the riot. At 4:22 p.m., Trump issued a video message on social media that Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube later took down. In it, he repeated his claims of electoral fraud, praised his supporters and told them to "go home." At 6:25 p.m., Trump tweeted: "These are the things and events that happen when a sacred landslide election victory is so unceremoniously & viciously stripped away from great patriots who have been badly & unfairly treated for so long" and then issued a call: "Go home with love & in peace. Remember this day forever!" At 7:00, Rudy Giuliani placed a second call to Lee's number and left a voicemail intended for Tuberville urging him to make more objections to the electoral votes as part of a bid "to try to just slow it down."
After assets from the State of Virginia had entered the District, at 4:17 p.m., a video was released of Donald Trump calling for supporters to "go home." The Secretary of Defense then approved deployment of the National Guard. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley later told the House committee investigating January 6 that Pence, not Trump, had ordered the deployment of the National Guard. By 4:24 p.m., a 12-man armed FBI tactical team had arrived at the Capitol Complex. At 5:02, about 150 soldiers of the DCNG departed the D.C. Armory; the contingent reached the Capitol complex and began support operations at 5:40. By 6:14 p.m., U.S. Capitol Police, D.C. Metropolitan Police, and DCNG successfully established a perimeter on the west side of the U.S. Capitol. At 8:00 p.m., the U.S. Capitol Police declared the Capitol building to be secure. Capitol Officer Brian Sicknick died after being pepper sprayed during the riot. He had 2 strokes the next day. Ahsli Babbitt was an insurrectionist who was shot and killed by Lt. Michael Lery Bryd after Babbitt wanted to climb into the shattered window of a barricaded door. This was ruled a justified homicide. Many officers died like Rosanne Boyland and Kevin Greeson from an accidental overdose and from heart disease respectively. Some police officers committed suicide because of the stress from the insurrection. Tables were damaged, photos were ripped from walls, art was looted, and human excrement were found in many hallways. These terrorist savages were deplorable criminals. Riley Williams is a woman charged with stealing Nancy Pelosi's laptop. The National Guard was in the U.S. Capitol for weeks after January 6, 2021 too. Donald Trump was impeached again in 2021, but the Senate didn't remove him from office with a conviction. Trump is a traitor to American democracy and human freedom.
By 6 p.m., the building was cleared of rioters, and bomb squads swept the Capitol. At 7:15 p.m., Defense Secretary Miller told the leaders of Congress that they were cleared to return to the Capitol. At 8:06 p.m., Pence called the Senate back into session, and at 9 p.m., Pelosi did the same in the House. After debating and voting down two objections, Congress voted to confirm Biden's electoral college win at 3:24 a.m. on January 7, 2021.
In a televised congressional hearing on June 9, 2022, Congresspersons Bennie Thompson and Liz Cheney stated that Trump did nothing to stop the attack despite numerous urgent requests that he intervene. They described Trump's inaction as a "dereliction of duty." Cheney noted that Trump had attempted to overturn a free and fair democratic election by promoting a seven-part conspiracy. According to Representative Thompson, "Jan. 6 was the culmination of an attempted coup, a brazen attempt, as one rioter put it shortly after Jan. 6, to overthrow the government ... The violence was no accident. It represents Trump's last stand, most desperate chance to halt the transfer of power." Trump, according to the committee, "lied to the American people, ignored all evidence refuting his false fraud claims, pressured state and federal officials to throw out election results favoring his challenger, encouraged a violent mob to storm the Capitol and even signaled support for the execution of his own vice president."
After the June 9 hearing, Congressman Tom Rice (R) reiterated his long-held view of Trump's conduct saying, "He watched it happen. He reveled in it. And he took no action to stop it. I think he had a duty to try to stop it, and he failed in that duty." Now, the January 6th Committee existed.
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The January 6th Committee
The January 6th Committee was made up of the House select committee to find information about the attempted January 6th coup d'état against American democracy. It wanted to find the truth and make sure that people know who is responsible for the terrorist attack. Their final report will be sent to the DOJ or the Department of Justice. The DOJ must decide to investigate or charge Trump and his allies who are responsible for the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol and the near coup d'état against the American government. The Justice Department has its own separate investigation too. The testimony of Cassidy Hutchinson made the DOJ increase its investigation. If it wasn't for the testimony of Hutchinson, my personal opinion is that the DOJ would never have charged anyone in the future. The Chair is Bennie Thompson, and the Vice Chair is Liz Cheney. Other members of the committee are Zoe Lofgren of California, Adam Schiff of California, Pete Aguilar of California, Stephanie Murphy of Florida, Jamie Raskin of Maryland, and Elaine Luria of Virginia. There are many senior staff for the committee. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi first said that she would appoint a select committee to investigate the events after the plan for a commission failed by a filibuster of the Senate (or it wasn't bicameral). The vote for it was 222 to 190. By July 1, 2021, Pelosi appointed eight members to be part of the committee. The investigation by the House Committee is ongoing. Public hearings started on July 27, 2021. By the end of 2021, the committee interviewed more than 300 witnesses and had more than 35,000 documents. By 2022, there were over 1,000 witnesses and 125,000 records. Some interviews were recorded. Donald Trump could be charged with obstruction of the electoral certification proceedings and could carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Other possible charges are dereliction of duty in not stopping the riot and seditious conspiracy. By May 2, 2022, Fulton County's District Attorney Fani Willis opened a special grand jury to consider criminal charges in the state of Georgia.
The committee's first public testimonies came on July 27, 2021. Many people testified like the four police officers on the front line as terrorists attacked the U.S. Capitol. Both Thompson and Cheney gave opening statements. The officers who testified are Daniel Hodges, Michael Fanone, Harry Dunn, and Aquilino. By August 27, 2021, the committee demanded records from 15 social media companies going back to the spring of 2020. By September 22, 2021, the Guardian reported that the committee has considered issuing subpoenas for call records or testimony of senior Trump administration officials like Meadows, Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino, and former Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale. On September 23, 2021, the House Committee sent subpoenas to Meadows, Scavino, chief strategist Steve Bannon, Pentagon official, and former Devin Nunes aide Kash Patel. Documents are demanded by October 7. Bannon and Patel are instructed to testify before the committee on October 14, and Meadows and Scavino on October 15. Meadows is granted a postponement and rescheduled for November 12.
On October 21, 2021, all 220 House Democrats and 9 House Republicans vote in favor of the resolution to hold Steve Bannon in contempt of Congress, a majority that refers Bannon's case to the Justice Department. The Justice Department is deciding whether to prosecute Bannon. A conviction could take years, according to Stanley Brand, former general counsel to the House of Representatives. CNN reports that Cheney and Kinzinger have interviewed former Trump director of strategic communications Alyssa Farah. She resigned in December 2020 and told CNN after the January 6 attack that Trump had lied to the American people about the election results on October 22, 2021. On November 8, 2021, the committee issued subpoenas for six people: Trump 2020 campaign manager Bill Stepien; campaign senior advisor Jason Miller; former Trump national security advisor Michael Flynn; conservative lawyer and former professor John Eastman; Angela McCallum, executive assistant to the campaign; and Bernard Kerik, a Trump ally who participated in meetings at the Willard Hotel regarding efforts to overturn the election. Ten other Trump officials and aides are subpoenaed the next day: former White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany; senior advisor for policy Stephen Miller; Trump bodyman Nicholas Luna; White House personnel director John McEntee; Ken Klukowski, senior counsel to assistant attorney general Jeffrey Clark; deputy chief of staff Chris Liddell; Oval Office operations coordinator Molly Michael; special assistant for legislative affairs Cassidy Hutchinson; Benjamin Williamson, senior advisor to chief of staff Mark Meadows; and Mike Pence's national security advisor, Keith Kellogg. All 16 people were required to provide documents by November 23 and scheduled to testify under oath through December. Alex Jones was subpoenaed on November 22, 2021 along with Roger Stone, and other people. On that day, Robert Patrick Lewis, chairman of 1st Amendment Praetorian, a group alleged to have provided security at several rallies before January 6, is also subpoenaed that day.
The Guardian reported that on the night before the January 6 attack, Trump made several calls to his associates at the Willard Hotel, where a command center or "war room" had been established in a set of rooms and suites. Present at the Willard was a team led by Trump personal attorney Rudy Giuliani, Bannon, Eastman, and Boris Epshteyn. Michael Flynn, Roger Stone, and Bernard Kerik were also present. Trump called to convey that Pence would not agree to employ the Pence Card to overturn the electoral vote, as proposed by Eastman and discussed in an Oval Office meeting on January 5. He discussed ways to delay the certification in order to get alternate slates of electors for Trump sent to Congress, as he, Giuliani, and Eastman had discussed by conference call with 300 state legislators on January 2. The Guardian reported that Trump discussed some topics only with lawyers at the Willard so as to preserve the confidentiality afforded by attorney-client privilege. By December 1, 2021, the committee voted unanimously to hold Jeffrey Clark in contempt of Congress. However, he is also given a new deposition date of December 4. This is because Clark has said that he plans to invoke the Fifth Amendment, which protects people from being forced to self-incriminate.
Mike Pence was asked to talked to the House committee by early January of 2022. On March 31, 2022, Jared Kushner voluntarily spoke to the committee for six hours. He was the highest-ranking Trump administration official interviewed to date, as well as the first Trump family member to be interviewed. By June 2, 2022, Bill Barr gave an in-person testimony behind closed doors for 2 hours. The FBI arrested Peter Navarro on June 3, 2022, because of the grand jury's indictment for contempt of Congress. By June 12, 2022, the night before the second public hearing, committee members Adam Schiff and Jamie Raskin told news outlets there is enough evidence to recommend that the Justice Department indict President Donald Trump.
This day of the late June 2022 testimony to the January 6th hearing is the most emotional part of the whole hearing. There is no moderation here. With this evidence, Trump and his allies involved in the conspiracy to overthrow the election of 2020 should be arrested and tried in court ASAP. When you have Trump trying to convince a Georgia Attorney General to commit election fraud and the Georgia Attorney General refused to do so, then Trump is complicit in a federal violation of the law. When you have Trump falsely calling a black woman election worker a criminal and a "hustler," you can tell immediately that Donald Trump is a racist and sexist liar. Also, Trump allies harassed and threatened a black woman election worker and her mother in vulgar ways. This is no time for centrist nonsense. This is a time for accountability and justice.
All of the testimony confirms what we knew about Trump and his supporters. Trump is a neo-fascist. Every Trump supporter is wrong period. All Trump supporters, involved in the conspiracy to overthrow the election of 2020, are criminals and traitors to the American democracy period. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, deputy Gabe Sterling, Arizona House of Representatives Speaker Rusty Bowers (who gave emotional words on his duty to follow the Constitution despite the false narratives made by Trump, Guiliani, and others), and election worker Wandrea "Shaye" Moss gave hard-hitting testimony about their experiences. Raffensperger found no evidence of election fraud. Brad faced threats and harassment to himself and his family. Sterling said that Qanon supporters threatened people. Wandrea Moss was accused by Trump and others of using a fake ballot scheme in Fulton County, Georgia. That was a lie. Wandrea Moss also said that she and her family received threats. Many people illegally came into Moss's grandmother's home. Wandrea faced racist and hateful threats via Facebook. Her mother is Ruby Freeman. To this day, Wandrea and her mother fear for their lives from far-right extremists. Far-right extremists are terrorists, plain and simple. If anyone watched the testimonies from all of these witnesses, you should know that Trump should be arrested and convicted of treason against the United States of America after a trial. It is the human testimonies describing the seriousness of the time that we live that should inspire us to defeat fascism once and for all. This is the most serious threat to our nation since the American Civil War. These GOP extremists aren't playing any games. The DOJ must do the right thing. Therefore, we should not only vote them out of office, but we should cultivate a society where democratic freedoms are strengthened plus preserved.
On June 23, 2022, live witnesses during this fifth public hearing were former officials of the Department of Justice during the Trump administration. They described how Trump tried to enlist the Justice Department in his fight to overturn the 2020 presidential election. In videotaped testimony at the committee's fifth public hearing, it is revealed that Representatives Matt Gaetz, Mo Brooks, Andy Biggs, and Louie Gohmert asked for pardons at the end of the Trump administration. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene may also have asked for a pardon, according to a former aide to White House chief of staff Mark Meadows.
By late June of 2022, former Trump White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson gave a bombshell, shocking testimony to Congress. Even now, it's a lot to digest. This information increases the chance of Donald Trump and others to be finally charged for many crimes. In the meantime, it's time to review Hutchinson's testimony. Hutchinson has sworn under oath these words. This is all of her eyewitness accounts of the nature of the Trump White House. She gave words to expose the abusive, nefarious, lying, and barbaric actions of former President Donald Trump. This is why I didn't vote for Trump in 2020. She said that Trump and his inner circle were warned about the potential for violence on January 6, 2021, and how Trump wanted to join the terrorists at the U.S. Capitol who caused the insurrection. She said that Trump knew that the terrorists had weapons and didn't care. Hutchinson cooperated with the House select committee in a very transparent fashion. She said that when the crowd of terrorists wanted to hang Mike Pence, Trump supported the chant and said that Pence deserved it. Hutchinson said that Trump was in a Presidential vehicle wanting to go to the Capitol riot. Secret Service refused, so Trump tried to grab the wheel and assault a Secret Service agent. They got Trump and placed him in the White House. He blamed Meadows for not going to the terrorist event. Recently, some Secret Service agents denied that Trump wanted to fight agents or grabbed the steering wheel.
Hutchinson, under oath, said that Trump was personally aware of the threat of violence in the U.S. Capitol. Trump was told that weapons were confiscated from many of his supporters who came for the rally. She said that Trump wanted to take the metal detectors away. It is incredible evidence of Trump doing nothing and desiring to allow terrorists to carry weapons to the U.S. Capitol. The insurrectionists had body armor and weapons when they terrorized the U.S. Capitol. Trump is obviously an active collaborator in the insurrection overtly. White House Counsel Pat Cipollone said that people are going to die as a product of the riot, and Meadows refused to confront Trump about Mike Pence's life being in danger. Meadows supports the election lie. Hutchinson said that Trump was cursing in the White House, throwing food on the walls, stripping away tables, etc. Liz Cheney said that there might be evidence of witness tampering too. Democratic Chair of the committee Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi wants more cooperation to come. The habitual liar Trump has denied all allegations, but he is guilty of the coup attempt against American democracy. Cipollone warned that if the White House would go to the Capitol, they will be charged with every crime possible. Hutchinson could have the John Dean moment in relation to the House January 6th committee investigation event. Cassidy Hutchinson's testimony changes everything because she is a first-hand witness to these occurrences. Donald Trump must be held accountable for his treasonous actions.
On July 12, 2022, at the seventh public hearing, Representative Liz Cheney revealed that Donald Trump had called one of the committee's witnesses. That person did not answer Trump's call. The witness was said to be someone who had not yet testified publicly. The person was later further identified (but not named) as a White House support staffer who did not routinely speak to Trump and who had been speaking to the committee. The phone call had happened sometime within the previous two weeks, following Cassidy Hutchinson's public testimony.
Conclusion
The January 6th House Committee has been very historic in American history. With its hearings and research, we know for certain that Donald Trump and his allies worked in a far-right conspiracy to try to overthrow the 2020 Presidential election. They didn't work in this attempted coup d'état alone. They worked with members of the Oath Keepers, The Proud Boys, and other far-right groups in trying to ruin American democracy forever. Some folks have tried to ignore or minimize what took place. There can be no sugarcoating. When you witness in this year alone, rights being harmed, voting rights being suppressed, and legitimate anti-racism books being banned in numerous schools, then we realize that our nation's democracy is under threat. There is no question that the leaders of the Republican Party are dominated by Trumpism. We have a mountain of evidence to prove Trump's corruption, and the Department of Justice has that responsibility to charge Trump (plus others) for numerous crimes. With the Secret Service texts being deleted and Trump trying to still lie about the election, we have continued issues. Recent news of Secret Serice agents making final calls to their wives and families outline how serious the near coup d'état was. Also, some Secret Service deleted their message after being instructed by Congress to preserve all records from January 6th, and the Secret Service wanted Mike Pence to leave the Capitol which would possibly prevent the official counting of Electoral votes (which opened the way for Trump to declare an emergency and hijack the election). Donald Trump did nothing for hours while terrorists harmed property and people at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. Trump actually called these terrorists his "special people" and "patriots." These terrorists are not patriots but traitors. The Capitol Hill police officers were victims of assaults, slurs, and massive violence by the insurrectionists. Threats of violence at the Capitol existed long before January 6th, and investigations should happen to figure out what occurred.
Conclusion (Fall of 2022)
Now, we have very important midterms coming up during the Fall of 2022. The issues of education, the economy, civil rights, reparations, the rights of black people, women's rights, the rights of other people of color, the War on Drugs, crime (dealing with crime is not just about making sure criminals are held accountable. It is also about making sure that laws are fairly applied to all people, and we have law and justice, not law and order. Stopping crime also deals with passing more gun safety regulations and not glorifying guns above the value of human life. Human life is worth more than a gun), the prison industrial complex, and other issues will be on the minds of voters. Also, we have gubernatorial races, Senate races, House races, and other local races. Right now, Wes Moore is running for the Governor of Maryland, and his Republican opponent is the election denier of Dan Cox. Wes Moore is a Democrat. President Joe Biden is a President filled with unsung accomplishments but economic uncertainty at the same time. Many people legitimately talk about the crisis we are facing with our democracy and our economy. Also, it is important to realize the accomplishments that happened this year like the computer chip passed that will help American semiconductor productor. There has been the passing the Reducing Inflation Act. Child poverty is now cut in half, and an increase of people rejecting the Trump-backed candidates. We still need to reckon with higher inflation and the war in Ukraine.
Also, we have to be wise to reject ignorance. Some conservatives and even some self-hating black people spew anti-black talking points. Some of them blame the black community collectively for crime, some promote the lie that black people don't speak out against crime, and some hypocritically glorify bad music but later blame every black person for ills in society. The person who said that nonsense is Kevin Gates. Kevin Gates is a hip-hop artist who hypocritically had music glorifying violence and other things, and then he said that we (black people) kill each other. The truth is that black people are not monolithic. There are tons of black people in Stop The Violence programs, self-help groups, and conflict intervention actions to fight back against violence nationwide. The vast majority of black people aren't killing each other. This anti-black nonsense has been promoted by Candance Owens (who disrespected Native Americans too. She called Native Americans literal cannibals and white people came to civilize them. You can Google this too). Owens omits that racists have used genocide against Native Americans, gave them smallpox, and stole their lands. Black folks experienced slavery and massive murders too. This history must be shown to the people, whether folks like it or not.
With the recent passings of Bill Russell and Nichelle Nichols, you can never take life for granted. For decades, we have seen the truth in many ways. Legends are here physically for a short span of time. Yet, we learn lessons from them in being inspired to live a life better in the present and the future than the past. With all that is going on in the world, we have to be real to see that our democracy is in a very fragile state. We were just near the end of our democracy in America as we know it during January 6, 2021, terrorist insurrection on the U.S. Capitol. We have the growth of unjust Supreme Court decisions that completely violated the rights of fellow human beings. We have mass shootings harming tons of human lives constantly. We have the most massive increase of fascism in the world from Hungary to America since World War II. This isn't hyperbole. This is real. For years, some in the media falsely claim that Trumpism (as Trump wanted to use the U.S. military to dominate the streets and shoot the protesters on sight during the summer of 2020 during the George Floyd protests) is just populism instead of what it really is, which is fascism. The paradox of this time is that we have a massive problem of far-right extremism, but many of the moderates still feel like we must compromise our convictions to placate the emotions of Republicans. This strategy doesn't work as most of them will never go along with us anyway. Also, centrism commonly ruins society as it maintains the status quo, doesn't increase economic power, and seeks to preserve the system instead of making a better system of justice for all. That is an independent, people-centered movement is necessary to solve our problems. We don't need to bow down to any human on this Earth, and we ought to stand up for our human rights. Addressing housing, health care, nutrition, pollution, education, and other real issues will make a real difference in establishing a better society.
By Timothy
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