Pet Blogging

Politico, “‘Clear and present danger’: Jan. 6 committee to describe lingering Trump threat”:

… “Tune in for our discussion of Trump’s clear and present danger presented to democracy and freedom in America by a movement that he’s galvanized,” panel member Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) said this week at a virtual People for the American Way event.

The panel intends to focus on evidence that Trump has “consistently and increasingly” been using rhetoric “that we knew caused violence on Jan. 6,” Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) told reporters recently. Cheney cited recent comments by U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson in which she upbraided elected Republicans for continuing to indulge “one man, who knows full well that he lost, instead of the Constitution he was trying to subvert.”

The select committee’s closing pitch to Americans will draw on all aspects of its more than yearlong probe. It’s expected to feature evidence that Trump’s allies were pushing him to declare victory on Election Day 2020 even before the votes were counted, and that Trump was warned of the unfolding violence at the Capitol before he tweeted an inflammatory attack on then Vice President Mike Pence.

By contending that even amid the wreckage of Jan. 6, Trump continued to plot ways to remain in power, the hearing will also function as a segue of sorts to the criminal case that federal prosecutors are piecing together — bolstered by the recent issuance of dozens of grand jury subpoenas and court-authorized searches of some of Trump’s top allies…

The hearing had been scheduled to take place originally on Sept. 28, but the select committee postponed it as Hurricane Ian bore down on Florida; the delay may turn out to be a boon for the panel. In the intervening two weeks, the committee obtained testimony from Virginia Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. And last week, Jeremy Bertino, a North Carolina leader of the Proud Boys who also interviewed with the select panel, pleaded guilty to seditious conspiracy.

Thursday’s hearing is likely to feature some of the select panel’s evidence obtained after its summer hearings, like interviews with Trump Cabinet members about internal discussions concerning the potential invocation of the 25th Amendment to remove him from power. It’s also set to include documentary footage of longtime Trump ally Roger Stone, who was followed around by a camera crew in the weeks leading up to Jan. 6.

The Stone footage, provided by a Danish film crew and obtained by CNN, includes audio of Stone — one day before Election Day — telling an associate, “Fuck the voting, let’s get right to the violence,” while laughing.

Select panel Chair Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) has also described a significant trove of documents and messages recently turned over by the Secret Service. Investigators have viewed the agency with skepticism after learning that thousands of messages sent among senior officials — including on and around Jan. 6, 2021 — were erased in what the agency described as a tech upgrade…

The House Jan. 6 committee is set to unveil “surprising” details including evidence from the Secret Service about the attack on the U.S. Capitol. Thursday afternoon’s session is likely to be its last public hearing before the midterm elections. https://t.co/CPvdJeA1jE

— The Associated Press (@AP) October 13, 2022

Official word from @CapitolPolice: After screening the letter, no substances or powders were found. There was “concerning language,” they say.

— Julie Tsirkin (@JulieNBCNews) October 11, 2022

NEWWWW — Jan 6 hearing will highlight new ⁦@SecretService⁩ surveillance video and records showing Trump knew about violence Jan 6, sought to stoke it – w ⁦@JaxAlemany⁩ https://t.co/l2NeBvnkqb

— Carol Leonnig (@CarolLeonnig) October 12, 2022

The House committee investigating Jan. 6 has managed to collect a staggering trove of material that includes transcripts of more than 1,000 interviews and millions of other documents.

Soon, the panel’s evidence will need a safe home. https://t.co/VTwWalAytt

— The Associated Press (@AP) October 12, 2022