The Senate panel probing the Capitol attack on Jan. 6 is bracing for its first brush with an unstoppable force: Donald Trump.
Some areas of the company’s work are going well. As per people familiar with the panel’s operations, the committee conducted its first closed-door recorded sessions with willing eyewitnesses and more are planned for this week.
It’s Going to be an Epic Clash
However, even as it investigates what exactly transpired and at whose request, the select committee is gearing to run up a wall of opposition in the coming days. This is expected to be a last-ditch effort by Trump and his friends to thwart the Jan. 6 investigation.
The past president has a short window to try to prevent the National Archives from revealing data from his White House; this data might reveal details about his efforts to alter the results of the election in 2020.
Still, some of Donald Trump’s closest advisers have until Thursday to respond with a demand for their personal records issued by the committee. The anticipated fight from Trump will likely be the first challenge of the panel’s political and legal might.
The panel has worked quickly, but meticulously, to obtain records from government agencies and collect voluntary evidence from supportive individuals.
Look at this outrageous tweet:
BREAKING: A federal prosecutor who worked under Robert Mueller demands that Americans “place Trump under citizen’s arrest” for inciting the January 6 insurrection because the “Justice Department refuses to enforce the criminal laws of the U.S.” RT IF YOU’RE WITH THE PROSECUTOR!
— Occupy Democrats (@OccupyDemocrats) October 3, 2021
Rep. Pete Aguilar said, “I believe it would be a misunderstanding to say we aren’t ready for all of these situations.” Court orders to former White House Chief Mark Meadows, veteran Trump staffer Dan Scavino, as well as Trump world leaders Steve Bannon and Kash Patel will be issued on Thursday.
These orders will require them to provide records to the committee. Chairman of the committee Bennie Thompson, a Democrat, indicated on Friday that anyone who missed a deadline would be subjected to “disciplinary referrals.”
No One Knows How Trump Will React
None of the four has said openly how they will react to the summons; also, Patel criticized the panel’s process in a speech. Requests for comment from Trump’s representatives and individuals of his innermost circle on how they plan to react have gone unnoticed.
For the first time, a federal judge refuses to sentence a January 6 defendant harshly, faulting the U.S. government for giving a free pass to antifa and BLM rioters. My take! pic.twitter.com/rTf0HVoS3t
— Dinesh D'Souza (@DineshDSouza) October 5, 2021
However, members of the committee anticipate these individuals will refuse to participate voluntarily; this is one of the reasons the panel issued subpoenas without giving them the opportunity to produce documents or evidence freely.
Democrat Rep. Jamie Raskin stated, “the panel is determined to pursue every conceivable goal. These events drew literally tens of thousands of people. So, we’re confident the truth will be revealed.”
Individuals have begun stepping forward to speak inside closed-door meetings in transcribed interviews; this is similar to what the Intelligence Committee did during Trump’s initial impeachment attempt.
The investigative panel — led by Rep. Adam Schiff, who now serves on the Jan. 6 committee — broke Trump’s impasse almost precisely two years ago.
This happened when it obtained a consensually recorded interview with senior diplomat Kurt Volker. This sparked a series of conversations with officials from the Department of State and the Pentagon.
