Funviralpark WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 attacks on the U.S. Capitol released a final report late Thursday showing former President Donald Trump inciting deadly riots. He outlined his claim that he should be held criminally responsible.
The House Select Committee also released transcripts of a number of interviews and witness testimony on Thursday and Wednesday.
The 800+ page report is based on nearly 1,200 interviews and hundreds of thousands of documents over 18 months, and over 60 federal and state court decisions.
According to an executive summary released earlier this week, the report lists 17 specific findings, discusses the legal ramifications of actions by Trump and some of his associates, and criticizes Trump and other individuals at the Justice Department. The report also lists legal recommendations to help avoid another such attack.
On Monday, a panel ordered the former Republican president to be indicted on four counts, including obstruction and rioting, in an effort to overturn the November 2020 election results and for causing attacks on government seats. asked the public prosecutor.
In its 160-page summary of the report, the House committee said, “President Trump did not honor his constitutional obligation to ‘take care that the laws were faithfully enforced.’ He plotted to overturn the results of the election.”
In comments posted on his social networks after the final report was released, President Trump called it “very partisan” and a “witch hunt.” He said he had failed to “investigate the reasons for the (Jan. 6) protests, election fraud.”
The Democratic-led panel’s demands on the Justice Department do not compel federal prosecutors to act, but they are the first time in history that Congress has referred a former president to criminal prosecution. Trump announced in November that he would run for president again.
In transcripts released Wednesday and Thursday, the former attorney for former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson told her to “disrespect” her knowledge of the events that led to the Capitol riot, “Better than I remember.”
Attorney Stephen Passantino advised Hutchinson to prepare for February depositions and to say she could not recall specific events before the commission, according to a transcript of her testimony. , she told the commission in September.
Trump delivered a fiery speech to supporters near the White House on the morning of Jan.・He openly criticized Mr. Pence.
The former president then waited hours to issue an official statement as thousands of his supporters raged in the Capitol, attacking police and threatening to hang Pence.
The 2020 election results were being certified by Pence and lawmakers when the Capitol was attacked after weeks of false claims that Trump won the election.
Reported by Kanishka Singh, Washington.Editing by Kenneth Maxwell
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