1/6 Insurrection Investigation

[Rick Plant]

What 5 previous congressional investigations can teach us about the House Jan. 6 committee hearings

Six public hearings to be held in June by the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection will attempt to answer the question of whether former President Donald Trump and his political allies broke the law in seeking to overturn the 2020 election results.

The Jan. 6 hearings are part of a long history of congressional investigation.

The first congressional inquiry occurred in the House in 1792 to investigate Gen. Arthur St. Clair’s role in the U.S. Army’s defeat in the Battle of the Wabash against the tribes of the Northwest Territory. The Senate conducted its first official investigation in 1818, looking into Gen. Andrew Jackson’s conduct in the Seminole War.

A look back at five of the most noteworthy congressional investigations since those initial probes suggests that Congress regularly has used its constitutional authority to gather facts and draw public attention to important issues in the country.

Ku Klux Klan hearings

In 1871, Congress established a committee to investigate violence against and intimidation of Black voters in several states.

A year later, the committee produced 13 volumes of evidence containing the testimony of over 600 witnesses describing systemic violence – including killings, beatings, lynchings and rapes – committed by the Ku Klux Klan, known also as the KKK.

Despite extensive media coverage and the wealth of information uncovered by the committee, many Americans at that time still questioned the KKK’s existence.
Such skepticism was supported by the Democratic minority report that accompanied Congress’ investigation. At a time when Democrats represented the party that had supported slavery, their report legitimized the KKK’s actions in undeniably racist language. Segments of the public adopted the bigoted language and ideas contained in the minority report for decades to come.

Teapot Dome scandal

In 1922, news broke that President Warren G. Harding’s administration had secretly leased federal oil fields to political allies. At the time, these no-bid contracts were valued at around $200 million – the equivalent of over $3 billion today.

The contracts were awarded by Secretary of the Interior Albert Fall, a former senator and a friend of the president’s.

Congress opened an investigation into the matter, and a UPI news story said on Jan. 22, 1924, “The assistance of Department of Justice agents, United States marshals and the federal courts will be invoked if necessary, senators said, to force the truth from reluctant witnesses.”

As a result of the investigation, Fall resigned and was later convicted of bribery. He was the first former Cabinet official in history to be sentenced to prison because of misconduct in office.

Harding is considered to be one of the country’s worst presidents, in part because of the scandal and corruption brought to light by Congress’ investigation.

Organized crime and the Kefauver Committee

In 1950, Congress formed a special committee in response to a series of news articles suggesting that organized crime was corrupting many local government officials. It was referred to as the Kefauver Committee after its chairman, Democratic Senator Estes Kefauver of Tennessee. The committee launched an investigation, traveling to 14 major cities in the process.

The committee’s hearings rank among the most widely viewed congressional investigations in history. It is estimated that 90% of televisions in America were tuned in to the hearings.

In part, what made the investigation such good TV was the cast of characters subpoenaed to testify. Mobsters, their girlfriends, former elected officials and their lawyers paraded into the hearings, all captured on live television.

Not all witnesses complied with the subpoenas. In fact, the Senate approved 45 contempt of Congress citations in 1951 alone. Litigation over witness noncompliance continued in most cases even after the committee issued its over 11,000-page final report.

Watergate

In 1973, after seven men from President Richard Nixon’s reelection campaign broke into the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee, the Senate voted 77-0 to establish a committee to investigate the break-in.

Throughout the investigation, President Nixon refused to cooperate with the committee’s requests for information and directed his aides to do the same. He claimed executive privilege gave him the right to refuse to hand over White House records, including audiotapes, and planned for many of them to be destroyed.

The battle between the president and Congress went to court and, hours before the House was scheduled to start debating whether to impeach him, the Supreme Court ruled against Nixon.

The tapes showed Nixon had, despite his denials, taken part in the cover-up. Nixon lost the support of prominent Republicans in Congress, and he resigned shortly thereafter to avoid impeachment.

Intelligence community and the Church Committee

In addition to revealing presidential misconduct, the Watergate Committee investigation found evidence that the U.S. intelligence community was conducting potentially unconstitutional domestic operations, including spying on U.S. citizens.

In response, Congress established a special committee to investigate. The committee’s 16-month inquiry exposed the attempted assassinations of foreign political leaders, experiments conducted on U.S. citizens, and covert operations to recruit journalists to monitor private citizens’ communications and to spread propaganda over the media.

The committee found that every presidential administration from Franklin D. Roosevelt to Richard Nixon had abused its authority.

“Intelligence agencies have undermined the constitutional rights of citizens,” the final report concluded, “primarily because checks and balances designed by the framers of the Constitution to assure accountability have not been applied.”

Mainstream oversight

A few common themes run throughout these five noteworthy congressional investigations.

First, as the legacy of the Church Committee suggests, public hearings help provide a layer of transparency to government.

Congress and the media can be allies in investigation. Investigative reporting like in the work that revealed the Teapot Dome scandal and Watergate can lay the groundwork for congressional probes. And media coverage of proceedings like the Kefauver Committee’s investigation not only raises public awareness but also puts pressure on federal, state and local government officials to act.

But party can get in the way. In one example, partisan infighting and the Democrats’ rejection of the KKK proceedings hindered Congress’ effectiveness and provided a narrative that helped justify Jim Crow laws and other racist policies.

Similarly, party loyalty led many Republicans to remain vocal in support of Nixon until the full scope of the president’s actions were revealed through the Watergate investigation.

These moments in history also illustrate the importance of examining elected officials’ political support networks.

When President Harding assumed office, he placed loyal allies in government positions. While these allies helped reinforce Harding’s pledge to reorganize government and “return to normalcy,” they also perpetuated corruption.

Likewise, the Watergate investigation prompted criminal charges against 69 people, including two Cabinet officials. Additionally, dozens of major corporations pleaded guilty to illegally financing Nixon’s reelection campaign.

While the upcoming hearings of the House Jan. 6 investigative committee will be dealing with unprecedented events in American history, the very investigation of these events has strong precedent. Congress has long exercised its power to investigate some of the greatest problems facing the nation. In that way, the upcoming hearings fit squarely into the mainstream of American government oversight.

https://theconversation.com/what-5-previous-congressional-investigations-can-teach-us-about-the-house-jan-6-committee-hearings-181548

[Rick Plant]

Court has unsealed yet another US Capitol breach case involving a defendant from Chicago.

Justice Dept court filing says phone data and a neighbor linked Kimberly DiFrancesco to Capitiol on Jan 6.

[Rick Plant]

Jan 6 defendant Jon Mellis is again seeking release from pretrial jail. He's accused of assaulting police with a wooden beam and is accused of history of assault cases in Virginia in prior years.

[Rick Plant]

'Re-create the madness': Jan 6th committee dropping hints about what to expect next week



Beginning next Thursday night, the House Select Committee that has been investigating the Jan 6th Capitol riot that was instigated by former president Donald Trump is scheduled to make their case to the American public after dropping hints that their findings "will really blow the roof off the House."

According to CNN analyst Stephen Collinson, the first hearing, to take place during prime time, will set the stage "to re-create the madness and fear of a moment when American democracy itself was on the brink" by presenting powerful new evidence.

As Collinson explained, "New glimpses of the mountain of evidence piled up by the committee suggest the panel will take viewers deep into Trump's inner circle before and during the insurrection to pose the question of why he didn't try to stop it as hours passed," adding the committee "plans to re-create the horror of the crazed day when supporters of then-President Donald Trump effectively tried to stage a coup after the 2020 election and to prevent the certification of President Joe Biden's victory."

As the analyst explained, the bi-partisan committee will attempt to get the attention of Americans 17 months after the attack that shocked the nation and hints dropped on Thursday are a preview of what to expect.

"There were clear signs on Thursday that the committee plans to build a case that the ex-President and some key lieutenants still represent a clear and present danger to the republic should he go ahead and run for the presidency again and win in 2024," the CNN analyst argued. "Some of the evidence emerging about Trump's conduct on January 6 is staggering."

In an interview on CNN, former Rep Denver Riggleman (R) who has been acting as an advisor to the committee, said former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows's texts will be front and center.

"It's almost a road map to what happened. And a lot of the texts haven't come out," Riggleman explained. "It is horror, because these are people that are serving our government. And you can see, you know, almost QAnon and other conspiracy theories had inundated the Republican Party all the way up to the top levels. ... It's absolutely stunning that these individuals enter a position of power -- making policy."

Read more here:

https://www.cnn.com/2022/06/03/politics/january-6-committee-hearing-prime-time/index.html

[Rick Plant]

The Jan. 6 committee hearings are finally here — and Republicans are running scared



The long-awaited January 6th committee public hearings have finally been scheduled. The first one is set for next Thursday, June 9th, in prime time. The committee previewed their plans for next week, announcing on Thursday that they will "present previously unseen material documenting January 6th, receive witness testimony, preview additional hearings, and provide the American people a summary of its findings about the coordinated, multi-step effort to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and prevent the transfer of power." They seem to be very carefully choreographing the event, even drawing out the suspense by not naming the witnesses until next week.

The hearings, Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., said, will "tell a story that will blow the roof off the House." We can only hope that is not unjustified hyperbole. These hearings are an important public record of an attempted coup that the whole country must see.

What we have already seen is quite a bit of information, like the voluminous text messages from various Republicans and journalists to the White House Chief of staff Mark Meadows during the insurrection itself. There have been leaked testimonies from major players inside the Department of Justice and Donald Trump's White House, as well as information from Trump's legal advisers and various state officials. Between all of that and the media's own digging, people who have been following the story have a pretty clear picture of what happened.

Donald Trump and his allies tried to overturn a legal election with a series of plots that culminated in the violent insurrection on January 6th. But no one has put together the whole story for the American people so that they can understand just how unprecedented and dangerous these schemes were — and how close we came to a very serious constitutional crisis.

The committee is promising previously unseen material and one hopes it will add something to the narrative that we haven't yet seen. And it seems that they are serious about putting together a professional, multi-media presentation, so it shouldn't be too boring for the public. But the most important element of these hearings is going to be witness testimony. It will be the first time we've heard from anyone involved, or even any experts, on the subject of the coup in an official capacity. (You may recall that in Trump's second impeachment, the Democrats were going to call witnesses but backed down at the last minute. )

Expert testimony is always important in hearings like this to educate the public about complex issues. Axios reported this week that they plan to call conservative Republican former federal judge, J. Michael Luttig, a man who was shortlisted more than once for a Supreme Court seat. Luttig advised Former Vice President Mike Pence on the illegality of overthrowing the government. (Evidently, Pence wasn't sure ...)

Republicans are obviously worried that some of their troops might tune in and see something that will shake their faith in the Big Lie.

He wrote in a CNN op-ed in April that Trump lost the election fair and square and that all the rules the Republicans are screaming were unlawfully changed were actually changed "to expand the right and opportunity to vote, largely in response to the COVID pandemic." He is right and the majority of Americans know that. But Luttig went much further in his analysis of the situation and it's something the greater public needs to understand:

Trump's and the Republicans' far more ambitious objective is to execute successfully in 2024 the very same plan they failed in executing in 2020 and to overturn the 2024 election if Trump or his anointed successor loses again in the next quadrennial contest. The last presidential election was a dry run for the next.

Luttig is ultra-conservative. But he isn't delusional and he isn't a coward which makes him something of a unicorn in Republican circles. His testimony should be very compelling.

CNN reported that the committee has also called members of former Vice President Pence's inner circle, including his chief counsel Greg Jacob and his chief of staff Marc Short. In addition they are expected to call former Justice Department officials who were pressured by the president and his lackeys to lie about the election being stolen as well as what CNN calls other "first hand witnesses."

We won't be hearing from Trump himself or the witnesses who are refusing to cooperate, some of whom, like Steve Bannon and former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, have been referred to the Department of Justice for contempt of congress. Meadows is perhaps the most important accomplice of the bunch since he seems to have been the clearing house for every half-baked conspiracy theory in the right-wing fever swamp during the post-election period. He originally cooperated with the committee and turned over a boatload of documents and text messages before he decided to clam up. The texts are scintillating reading, exposing the fact that virtually the entire GOP was begging Trump to stop the insurrection for hours, proving they believed he had the power to do so.

And apparently, as former GOP congressman and January 6th Committee investigator Denver Riggleman told Anderson Cooper, the text messages during the post election period prior to that day were downright chilling:

Riggleman calls Meadows the "MVP" for all the information he provided and one of his close aides, Cassidy Hutchinson, was subpoenaed and testified several times before the committee and appears to have shared other vitally important information. No one has announced that she will testify publicly but if she does, it's clear she has a story to tell.

Whatever happens in these hearings we can be sure that they will be different than any hearings you may have watched in recent years and it's not just because of the extraordinary subject matter. For the first time in recent memory, we will have a congressional hearing without even one obnoxious Republican grand stander seeking to derail the whole thing. We can expect that this committee will be serious and focused which is something we have not seen in public hearings for a very long time.

The Republicans are obviously worried that some of their troops might tune in and see something that will shake their faith in the Big Lie so they are plotting to "counter-program" the hearings. Axios reported on Thursday that they are deploying everyone from House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy to possibly Trump himself to fan out to Fox News, Steve Bannon's "War Room," "Real America's Voice," Facebook and Trump's own Truth Social to ensure the base doesn't lose their religion.

They plan to portray the Democrats as out of touch with average Americans, one aide telling Axios, "we've got to be rigid and responsible, but a lot of Republicans think if Dems want to just talk about Jan. 6 between now and the midterm election — good luck." In that case, they might want to have a chat with their Dear Leader who can't shut up about the Big Lie that's at the heart of this entire crisis. If anyone's keeping January 6th alive, it's Donald Trump.

https://www.rawstory.com/jan-6-hearings-2657453635/

[Rick Plant]

Jan. 6 committee set to make its case public with prime-time hearing
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/06/04/jan-6-committee-set-make-its-case-public-with-prime-time-hearing/

[Rick Plant]

Meet the little-known Trump aide who could ‘be the next John Dean’ in the Jan. 6 hearings



Former White House staffer Cassidy Hutchinson plays a similar role in the upcoming Jan. 6 hearings as White House counsel John Dean in the Watergate hearings.

"Cassidy Hutchinson, a top aide to then-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, has sat for multiple depositions with investigators — more than 20 hours — and is expected to play a starring role in the hearings, according to people familiar with the matter. Hutchinson, people familiar with the committee said, has provided extensive information about Meadows’s activities in trying to overturn the election," The Washington Post reported Saturday. "The Washington Post reported late last month that Hutchinson had told the committee that Meadows remarked to others that Trump indicated support for hanging his vice president after rioters who stormed the Capitol on that day started chanting, 'Hang Mike Pence!'"

According to a LinkedIn profile, Hutchinson began in the office of Legislative Affairs in March of 2019. After two promotions, she held the title of "Special Assistant to the President for Legislative Affairs, Office of the Chief of Staff" on Jan. 6, 2021.

“Cassidy Hutchinson might turn out to be the next John Dean,” said Norm Eisen, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution who served as counsel to House Democrats.

In May, Politico reported Hutchinson told the select committee that Meadows incinerated documents after a meeting with Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA).

"Hutchinson has recalled for the committee various episodes in the chaotic scramble to sustain Trump’s election-fraud lie. A former mid-level aide, she kept detailed schedules of movements in the West Wing and had extensive conversations with Meadows," The Post reported. "Court filings show Hutchinson detailing a meeting in the lead-up to Jan. 6 between Meadows and House Republican lawmakers in which they discussed delaying the Joint Session of Congress — or altogether preventing the counting of electoral votes — so that state legislatures could select different electors."

Hutchinson was described as "no longer a figure in Trump’s orbit or Republican politics."

The newspaper has previously reported that Hutchinson said Reps. Perry, Matt Gaetz (R-FA) and Louie Gohmert (R-TX) were warned by the White House Counsel’s Office that their scheme to overturn the election was illegal.

Hutchinson was a White House intern prior to being hired. She described her experience to Christopher Newport University.

"I have set a personal goal to pursue a path of civic significance," she said.

https://www.rawstory.com/cassidy-hutchinson/