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On January 6, 2021, the U.S. Congress was hit, shocking the world.
After 11 months, nearly 100 subpoenas and more than 1,000 interrogations, the committee on the Jan. 6, 2021, rioting attack on the U.S. Capitol finally ended its closed-door work and began holding public hearings to present its findings.
At the first hearing on Thursday, June 9, the chairman of the investigative committee, Rep. Thompson of Mississippi, said: “January 6 was the culmination of an attempted coup, as one writer said shortly after January 6. That said, it was a blatant attempt to overthrow the government.”
“The violence isn’t an accident. It’s Trump’s last-ditch effort.”
“Those who break into our Capitol and fight law enforcement for hours are because they heard what President Trump said, that the election was stolen, and he A legitimate president.”
“President Trump called in the thugs, called the thugs, and lit the fire of the attack,” she said.
Before the House hearings began, Trump criticized such hearings as “political hoaxes.” Trump has been publicly suggesting that he will run for president again in 2024. He also went on to highlight unsubstantiated claims that the 2020 U.S. presidential election was rigged by massive fraud.
To understand the congressional investigation of the political unrest in the United States that shocked the world, here are the key takeaways from BBC North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher:
What is the purpose of the Commission’s investigation?
This is a committee led by the Democratic Party of the United States, which wants to clarify the nature of the unrest and clarify the activities and behaviors after the 2020 presidential election to influence the election results.
The stated purpose of this committee and related hearings is not only to provide a comprehensive picture of the Jan. 6 riots, but also to provide a “coordinated, multi-step effort” allegedly led by Trump and some in his circle to “overthrow the “The results of the 2020 presidential election.
The final outcome of the hearing could trigger prosecutions and Congress to enact new laws to strengthen election security.
As the U.S. midterm elections in November loom, Democrats may also want the hearing to remind Americans of the Capitol riots, which were meant to show support for the Republican president.
Who are the members of this committee?
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President Trump supporters during riots at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.
The committee consists of seven Democrats and two Republicans and is chaired by Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi.
The two Republican congressmen, Liz Cheney of Wyoming and Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, are staunch Republican conservatives opposed to Trump.
The committee members were appointed by Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
What will the hearing provide?
The committee has interviewed numerous Trump associates, advisers and administration officials, including Trump’s daughter Ivanka, son Donald Jr. and son-in-law Jared Kushner.
Members of former Vice President Mike Pence’s political team, law enforcement officials, individuals involved in the protests that led to the Capitol attack, and Republican officials across the United States were also questioned.
Parts of what the men said during interviews and documents and text messages from Trump circles have been revealed to the public.
But there may be new information that can help enrich some of the details.
Aides to the select committee said they planned to release a “substantial amount of new material,” including previously unseen documents, video and audio they obtained.
Investigators have been trying to find out what the president was doing on the day of the riots, which is what he did in the three hours from the start of the Capitol attack to when he recorded a video speech telling rioters to leave the Capitol.
How interested are Americans in hearings?
The hearing received substantial media coverage. Three US networks — ABC, NBC and CBS — aired portions of Thursday’s hearing.
However, Fox News does not specifically report live, and still broadcasts regular programming.
It takes a lot of content for a political event to grab the public’s attention, and if these hearings are a big drama, the script and the ending are already known.
The challenge for the committee will be to perpetuate the well-publicized event. To spark public interest, Democrats organized more than 90 hearing “watch parties” across the United States. The hearing was screened on a large screen outside the Capitol in Washington, with free ice cream for attendees.
What’s the GOP’s position on the hearing?
U.S. Republican members of Congress, especially those most loyal to Trump, have planned counter-actions that will respond quickly to statements at the committee’s hearing.
The two Republican lawmakers who were blocked from the committee by Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will appear on media outlets including Fox News.
In the eyes of Republican lawmakers who support Trump, the Democratic-led hearings showed no more than partisanship and grandstanding.
Many conservatives would argue that Democrats are now focusing on the past when in fact they should be focusing on the present, addressing pressing issues of the economy, immigration, trade and crime.
How long will the hearing last?
Only the first three hearings are currently scheduled, June 9, June 13 and June 15. More hearings by the committee are expected in June.
The committee plans to prepare a report in September, and possibly another hearing, outlining its findings to make recommendations for reforms to the U.S. electoral process.
The committee’s investigation has no firm deadline to end, but Democrats could lose their House majority in the upcoming midterm elections in November and hand over control of the House in January.
Republicans, who control the House of Representatives, are expected to swiftly shut down the investigation.
Are there legal consequences?
While the committee does not have the power to bring charges, it can make recommendations and provide evidence to the U.S. Justice Department, which is also opening a criminal investigation into the Jan. 6 congressional riots.
It is also possible that the committee recommends that Trump himself be charged with some form of criminal conduct, though that is far from certain.
In addition to the individual cases already launched against individuals who broke into the Capitol, the Justice Department has charged two Trump advisers, former White House adviser Bannon and Trade Representative Navarro, for refusing to take subpoenas from Congress.
The committee will eventually make legislative recommendations to prevent similar congressional riots from happening again, but they have yet to release details of those recommendations.
Political significance?
The biggest problem may not be the legal consequences, but the political ones.
In the days following the Jan. 6 attacks, Democrats predicted, while conservatives feared, that the American public would hold the Republican Party accountable. Since then, America’s traditional partisan divisions have resurfaced.
Democrats may want the hearings to remind voters heading to the polls in November what happened the last time a Republican was in office.
Right now, however, Americans seem to be more concerned about soaring gasoline prices.