The U.S. House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol is a select committee of the U.S. House of Representatives to investigate the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.[1] The attack, inspired by President Donald Trump's false claim of a stolen election, was an attempt to overturn the 2020 election results, in which Trump lost to Democrat Joe Biden.
Creation
The committee was formed through a party-line vote on July 1, 2021 with Democrats supporting it and a majority of Republicans going against it. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger were the only two House Republicans to be on the committee, and the Republican National Committee eventually censured them for their participation.[2]
Investigations
The investigation started with public hearings on July 27, when four police officers testified. By March 2022, the committee had interviewed nearly 700 people. Steve Bannon, Mark Meadows, Peter Navarro, and Dan Scavino have been held in criminal contempt of Congress for refusing to testify; Bannon was indicted by a federal grand jury.[3] Other members of Trump's inner circle are working with the committee.[4]
Purpose
The committee has argued that Trump knew he did not win the election and was committing fraud, and it may recommend that the U.S. Department of Justice open a criminal investigation into Trump's responsibility for the attack on the Capitol.[5][6] However, the Justice Department already has its own inquiries and investigations, the committee may instead focus on creating its final report.
References
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