Jan 6 hearings – live: Trump says Capitol riot ‘greatest movement’ in history as new violent footage leaked

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Jamie Raskin doesn’t say whether the Jan 6 Committee will get Mike Pence to testify

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LIVE – Updated at 18:57

With just hours to go before the start of the House January 6 select committee’s first prime-time hearing, former president Donald Trump took to Truth Social to claim the violent attack on the Capitol perpetrated by his supporters was “not simply a protest” but actually “the greatest movement” in US history.

Meanwhile, videotaped depositions from Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, could be presented publicly in the first of six public hearings.

According to committee aides, Chairman Bennie Thompson and Vice Chair Liz Cheney will play excerpts of testimony taken from close confidantes of the ex-president at the outset of Thursday’s prime-time televised hearing, consisting of “a small … but meaningful portion” of the evidence in the committee’s possession.

Members of the committee are reportedly also sitting on roughly 14,000 hours of unreleased Capitol Police bodycam footage, which is expected to be released when the hearing gets underway at 8 pm ET Thursday.

A former GOP insider tells The Independent that Donald Trump will “lose his mind” when he watches the January 6 committee hearings on the Capitol riot on Thursday evening and realises no one is there to interject on his behalf.

Key Points

Trump calls Jan 6 attack ‘greatest movement’ in US history hours ahead of hearing
Testimony from Ivanka could be shown at January 6 committee opening hearing
Jan 6 committee teases unreleased video footage of Capitol riot
Will Trump’s key congressional allies watch the Jan 6 hearing?
‘Trump will lose his mind’: The Jan 6 hearings vow to ‘change history’. Here’s what to expect

Trump calls Jan 6 attack ‘greatest movement’ in US history hours ahead of hearing

18:16 , Johanna Chisholm

Just hours before the House January 6 select committee was about to broadcast the first of six nationally televised hearings, Donald Trump came out raging that the very event the panel has spent the better part of year investigating was “the greatest movement in the history of our Country to Make America Great Again”.

The former US president took to Truth Social, which is currently the only social media platform where he is currently not blocked from airing his grievances.

In addition to slamming the “Unselect Committee” for misrepresenting the violent insurrection, which left more than 150 officers with injuries, the one-term president repeated “The Big Lie” that the 2020 US presidential election was stolen.

“The Unselect Committee didn’t spend one minute studying the reason that people went to Washington, D.C., in massive numbers, far greater than the Fake News Media is willing to report, or that the Unselects are willing to even mention, because January 6th was not simply a protest, it represented the greatest movement in the history of our Country to Make America Great Again,” Mr Trump wrote on his Truth Social account.

“It was about an Election that was Rigged and Stolen, and a Country that was about to go to HELL..& look at our Country now!”

Read the full report from The Independent’s Andrew Feinberg below:

Trump calls Capitol attack ‘greatest movement’ in US history ahead of Jan 6 hearing

Twitter blocks Jan 6 committee’s request for company’s internal Slack messages

17:45 , Johanna Chisholm

Twitter is fighting back against the January 6 House Select Committee request for the social media company’s internal messages, including Slack messages concerning how they moderated tweets regarding the 2021 insurrection, according to a report.

The company is claiming its First Amendment rights to reject the committee’s request, Rolling Stone reported.

Committee members have grown frustrated at the pushback from Twitter, as they think the messages can help them show how online extremism boosted the violence and chaos on that day.

Twitter said in a statement to the magazine that “since last year, we have had an ongoing, productive engagement with the Select Committee, and have provided appropriate, relevant information to contribute to this important investigation”.

Gustaf Kilander has more on the social media giant digging its heels in against the Jan 6 committee.

Twitter blocks Jan 6 committee’s request for company’s internal Slack messages

Republican arrested for role in Capitol riot hours before first Jan 6 hearing

17:12 , Johanna Chisholm

The FBI arrested Republican Ryan Kelley and charged the Michigan gubernatorial candidate on misdemeanor charges related to his involvement in the 6 Jan riot at the US Capitol, according to a criminal complaint filed on Thursday as was reported by The Detroit Free Press.

The Detroit-based news outlet reported that the real estate broker from Allendale, who filed paperwork to launch his committee to run for the state’s governor early in 2021, is expected to appear before a federal court later on Thursday.

Video footage of the Michigan Republican reportedly surfaced where Mr Kelley was visible at the Capitol on the day of the violent January 6 insurrection.

Federal agents raided and searched Mr Kelley’s Michigan home just hours before the first public hearing of the House select committee investigating the Capitol riot was to get underway.

In federal court records, Mr Kelley is described as being an active participant in the chaos that unfolded outside and inside of the Capitol, and that agents from the FBI opened up an investigation into his conduct within days of the riot, The Detroit Free Press reported.

NEW: Ryan Kelley, a GOP gubernatorial candidate in Michigan, has been arrested for conduct stemming from Jan. 6 pic.twitter.com/PSCisObl9z

— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) June 9, 2022

“At approximately 2:20 pm, Kelley continued to gesture to the crowd, consistently indicating that they should move towards the stairs that led to the entrance of the U.S. Capitol interior spaces,” the criminal complaint reads.

Prosecutors have reportedly filed four charges against Mr Kelley, including: knowingly entering or remaining in a restricted building; disorderly and disruptive conduct; knowingly engaging in any act of physical violence against person or property in a restricted building or grounds; and willfully injuring or committing depredation against property of the US.

If Mr Kelley is found guilty and is convicted, he could serve a maximum punishment of up to 10 years in federal prison.

Read the full report from Graig Graziosi below:

Michigan Republican candidate Ryan Kelley arrested by FBI for role in January 6 riot

Rep Raskin: ‘There will be multiple breakthroughs and epiphanies’

17:01 , Johanna Chisholm

While appearing on MSNBC ahead of the January 6 hearings, Rep Jamie Raskin informed Chris Hayes that the televised event will reveal some major “epiphanies” and “breakthroughs” that were otherwise unknown to the general populace.

“One of my Republican colleagues who’s not on our committee told me about 15 minutes ago that he was a little bit jealous that I was on a bipartisan committee where the two sides are actually working together,” said the Maryland congressman while appearing on All in With Chris Hayes on Wednesday night.

“I think there will be multiple breakthroughs and epiphanies for people along the way. And at the end, I think everybody is going to be able to answer for himself or herself — including members of Congress — is this something that we ever want to allow to happen again? And if not, they are going to have to listen to the final act of our committee which is we will be issuing recommendations on what should be done in order to fortify ourselves against coups and insurrections in the future.”

.@RepRaskin: “I think there will be multiple breakthroughs and epiphanies for people along the way. And at the end, I think everybody is going to be able to answer for himself or herself—including members of Congress—is this something that we ever want to allow to happen again?” pic.twitter.com/I25JROdlZA

— All In with Chris Hayes (@allinwithchris) June 9, 2022

Just days earlier, Rep Raskin, a member of the House select committee, had teased that the panel had uncovered damning evidence during a Q&A with The Washington Post.

“But the Select Committee has found evidence about a lot more than incitement here, and we are going to be laying out the evidence about all of the actors who were pivotal to what took place on January 6th,” the Democratic lawmaker said ahead of the first prime time hearings.

Jan 6 committee teases unreleased video footage of Capitol riot

16:41 , Johanna Chisholm

Lawmakers on the January 6 committee are sitting on unreleased on-the-ground footage of the Capitol riot that is expected to be released to the public during its hearings, which begin Thursday evening.

News of the unreleased footage was first reported by Good Morning America on Thursday morning, just hours before the committee’s first public hearing on Capitol Hill.

According to ABC News, the footage obtained by the panel includes the moments during which a crowd of previously peaceful Trump supporters turned into a violent mob who attacked the Capitol resulting in the deaths of several members of law enforcement.

In addition to the more than 1,000 people who were interviewed by the committee who were either directly or indirectly involved in the US Capitol insurrection, the pandel has reportedly also obtained roughly 14,000 hours of Capitol Police bodycam video.

The Independent’s John Bowden has more below:

Jan 6 committee teases unreleased video footage of Capitol riot

Navarro complains about legal fees in letter to judge: ‘I’ll be eating dog food if I stay out of jail’

16:14 , Johanna Chisholm

Peter Navarro, the former economic adviser to Donald Trump, told a federal judge on Wednesday that he is “at a severe disadvantage” and is facing trouble putting together a team of legal experts.

In a letter to judge Amit Mehta of the DC district court, Mr Navarro argued that although he remained without legal representation, the prosecution has begun filing motions to push for a speedy trial.

The justice department last Friday indicted Mr Navarro for contempt of Congress after he refused to comply with a congressional subpoena from the select committee investigating the 6 January riot at the US Capitol. He was arrested on Friday morning as he was boarding a plane to Nashville.

Mr Navarro said in his letter that he is “very actively seeking a legal team” but facing “a number of hurdles”. Earlier, he had hinted at defending himself to avoid paying a large sum in legal fees.

Continue reading the full story from The Independent’s Alisha Rahaman Sarkar below.

Peter Navarro complains about legal fees in letter to judge

Trump lands in New Jersey ahead of counterprogramming effort

15:45 , Johanna Chisholm

Donald Trump arrived in New Jersey Thursday, hours before the first January 6 public hearing was scheduled to air.

The former US president was seen in a video meeting with House Republican Conference Chair and Trump ally Elise Stefanik, who has accused the January 6 select committee’s public hearings of being performative by scheduling the televised proceedings during prime time rather than being focused on uncovering the truth.

Trump arrives in NJ today to plan counter-programming of the J6 hearings with Elise Stefanik. pic.twitter.com/hxJUu19lpd

— Ron Filipkowski 🇺🇦 (@RonFilipkowski) June 8, 2022

Four key questions for the January 6 committee hearings to answer

15:25 , Johanna Chisholm

Over the year and a half since a mob of former president Donald Trump supporters assaulted police officers and overran the seat of America’s legislative branch in hopes of stopping certification of Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory, the nine-member panel has amassed a staff of more than 40 personnel — including many investigators and former prosecutors — working in teams to untangle multiple lines of inquiry regarding the facts and circumstances which led to the worst attack on the Capitol since Major General Robert Ross ordered British troops to set it ablaze in 1814.

Here are some questions the panel will need to answer over the course of its’ public hearings, as reported by Andrew Feinberg here:

Four key questions for the January 6 committee hearings to answer

January 6 opening hearing will feature top Trump aides and family members

14:40 , Johanna Chisholm

The House January 6 select committee will have help presenting its findings from the members of Donald Trump’s inner circle who have given evidence in videotaped depositions, including Trump family members such as his daughter and former adviser, Ivanka Trump, and her husband Jared Kushner, also a senior advisor.

According to committee aides, Chairman Bennie Thompson and Vice Chair Liz Cheney will play excerpts of testimony taken from close confidantes to the ex-president at the outset of Thursday’s prime-time televised hearing, consisting of “a small … but meaningful portion” of the evidence in the committee’s possession.

Confirmed for the first of six public hearings is British filmmaker Nick Quested, who recorded members of the far-right Proud Boys as they stormed the building, and Caroline Edwards, a US Capitol Police officer who was seriously injured in last year’s attack.

Greg Jacob, chief counsel for then-Vice President Mike Pence, is also expected to provide live testimony to the commitee, according to the Wall Street Journal’s reporting.

Keep reading the full story from The Independent’s Andrew Feinberg.

Testimony from Ivanka Trump could be shown at January 6 committee opening hearing

Capitol riot: What happened on 6 January 2021?

14:00 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Botched assault on cradle of American democracy by misguided Donald Trump supporters remembered as deeply shameful climax to his chaotic and divisive reign, Joe Sommerlad writes:

What happened at the US Capitol on 6 January 2021?

Hearings guide: What to know as the January 6 panel goes public

13:00 , Maroosha Muzaffar

The House committee investigating the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol will hold the first in a series of hearings laying out its findings on Thursday night.

With the televised hearings, the seven Democrats and two Republicans on the nine-member panel hope to grab the attention of the American public and drive home the sheer violence of that day in 2021, as some have attempted to downplay the attack. And they plan to use the more than 1,000 interviews they have conducted to spotlight people who played pivotal roles in the siege — and to show that it was a deliberate, unprecedented attempt to block the certification of Joe Biden’s victory.

Read the full piece by Associated Press here:

Hearings guide: What to know as the Jan. 6 panel goes public

Peter Navarro calls potential gag order against him DOJ ‘hypocrisy’

12:00 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Peter Navarro may be hit with a gag order pertaining to his arrest for ignoring a 6 January Committee subpoena, if the Department of Justice so deems, it was reported.

Mr Navarro told Fox News on Wednesday that the reasoning for the potential gag order reflects a “glaring hypocrisy.”

Meanwhile, in a letter to judge Amit Mehta of the DC district court, Mr Navarro argued that although he remained without legal representation, the prosecution has begun filing motions to push for a speedy trial.

He also said that that he is “at a severe disadvantage” and is facing trouble putting together a team of legal experts.

Peter Navarro complains about legal fees in letter to judge: ‘I’ll be eating dog food if I stay out of jail’

11:00 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Peter Navarro, the former economic adviser to Donald Trump, told a federal judge on Wednesday that he is “at a severe disadvantage” and is facing trouble putting together a team of legal experts.

Read the full story by Alisha Rahaman Sarkar here:

Peter Navarro complains about legal fees in letter to judge

What Mike Pence has said about the January 6 riot

10:00 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Ex-vice president remains at odds with Donald Trump over Capitol riot, when violent insurrectionists threatened to hang him for failing to co-operate with plot to overturn election.

Read the full piece by Joe Sommerlad here:

What Mike Pence has said about the January 6 riot

What we know about Trump’s actions as insurrection unfolded

09:30 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Members of the House committee investigating the events of January 6 will hold their first prime-time hearing Thursday to share what they have uncovered about former president Donald Trump‘s efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, which culminated in the deadly storming of the US Capitol.

Part of their mission: Determining the former president’s actions that day. Much is already known about where Mr Trump was, what he said, and how he reacted. But large gaps remain.

Read AP’s piece on what we know so far:

What we know about Trump’s actions as insurrection unfolded

Who are the members of the January 6 select committee?

09:00 , Maroosha Muzaffar

The select committee impanelled to investigate the 6 January 2021 attack on the US Capitol will soon begin what it hopes will be a high-impact, attention-grabbing series of televised hearings meant to spell out its findings for the benefit of the American public.

The spectacle is naturally going to elevate the panel’s members to a higher level of public notoriety – so in advance of the incendiary sessions, here’s a rundown of who they are.

Read the profiles by Andrew Naughtie here:

Who are the members of the January 6 select committee?

Joe Biden talks gun control with Jimmy Kimmel: ‘Don’t want to emulate Trump’s abuse of the Constitution’

08:30 , Maroosha Muzaffar

The 46th President blamed the lack of any progress on gun safety on intimidation by the gun lobby, as he called on voters to make it a deciding issue come November during his first in-person appearance on a late-night talk show.

Read the full story by Peony Hirwani here:

President Joe Biden talks gun control with Jimmy Kimmel

Jan. 6 panel’s 1,000 witnesses: From Trump aides to rioters

08:00 , Maroosha Muzaffar

The House Select Committee investigating January 6 riots has interviewed more than 1,000 people who were directly or indirectly involved in the US Capitol insurrection as it’s probed the violent attack and former president Donald Trump’s unprecedented efforts to overturn his election defeat.

Read the full piece by Associated Press here:

Jan. 6 panel’s 1,000 witnesses: From Trump aides to rioters

The 6 Jan hearings vow to ‘change history’. Here’s what to expect

07:30 , Maroosha Muzaffar

The panel’s first hearing in prime time will feature a filmmaker who captured footage of a meeting between Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and Oath Keepers founder Elmer Stewart Rhodes, Eric Garcia and Andrew Feinberg report.

Read the full story here:

The 6 Jan hearings vow to ‘change history’. Here’s what to expect

When are the January 6 hearings?

07:00 , Maroosha Muzaffar

The House select committee investigating the Capitol insurrection on 6 January 2021 will hold six public hearings, according to a draft schedule.

The committee is set to hold two hearings in primetime at 8pm on Thursday 9 June and on 23 June. In between the primetime hearings, additional public sessions will be conducted at 10am on 13 June, 15 June, 16 June, and 21 June.

Read the full story by Gustaf Kilander here:

When are the January 6 hearings?

What Donald Trump has said about the January 6 riot

06:30 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Ex-president continues to gloat over size of the crowd at ‘Stop the Steal’ rally, portray jailed participants as innocent victims and shrug off responsibility ahead of televised congressional hearings.

Read the full piece by Joe Sommerlad here:

What Donald Trump has said about the January 6 riot

Donald Trump set to testify in New York fraud probe in July

06:00 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Former president Donald Trump, his son Donald Trump Jr and daughter, Ivanka Trump are scheduled to testify in New York’s civil probe into alleged fraud at their family business from 15 July.

Court documents revealed on Wednesday that New York state attorney general Letitia James and her team of investigators will have to conclude their questioning “by the following week.”

Mr Trump, his son and daughter have until 13 June to appeal to New York state’s highest court for a stay, according to the document filed by a lower court.

What has Donald Trump said about the January 6 riot?

05:30 , Oliver O’Connell

Joe Sommerlad reviews everything former President Donald Trump has said about the events of 6 January 2021.

What Donald Trump has said about the January 6 riot

Jared Kushner reportedly planned move to Miami before Trump had even lost election

05:01 , Oliver O’Connell

Senior White House adviser and son-in-law of Donald Trump reportedly began etching his plans to flee the coop before the former president had officially even lost his bid for reelection in 2020, according to The New York Times.

“We’re moving to Miami,” Mr Kushner reportedly told his wife Ivanka Trump, also a senior adviser in her father’s administration, just a little more than 24 hours after the last polls had closed in Alaska at midnight on 4 November.

Johanna Chisholm reports:

Kushner began plotting his move to Miami before Trump had even lost the 2020 election

What has Mike Pence said about the January 6 Capitol riot?

04:30 , Oliver O’Connell

Joe Sommerlad reviews what former Vice President Mike Pence, caught up in the centre of the events of 6 January 2021, has said about the Capitol riot since that day.

What Mike Pence has said about the January 6 riot

Trump’s inner circle goes on offense over Jan 6 public hearings

03:30 , Oliver O’Connell

A number of Republicans from Donald Trump’s inner circle have begun what many have called a mass counterprogramming effort ahead of the first public hearings from the January 6 committee, scheduled to begin this week.

The House Select Committee investigating the violent insurrection at the Capitol, which resulted in about 140 officers getting injured and one police officer dying, has conducted its work largely behind closed doors for the better part of a year. On Thursday, however, the bipartisan panel is set to open its first of six hearings during a primetime televised event.

Joanna Chisholm reports:

Trump’s loyalists go on offense ahead of the January 6 public hearings

Jan 6 committee members on diverging political paths

03:00 , Oliver O’Connell

The nine members of the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol insurrection are on diverging political paths as they prepare for public hearings that could become a defining moment in their careers.

Working in private rooms in a Capitol office building, the seven Democrats and two Republicans have participated in hours of interviews, hearing testimony from members of former President Donald Trump‘s family, former Justice Department officials and Trump White House aides. They’ve issued dozens of subpoenas, interviewed more than 1,000 witnesses and gathered tens of thousands of pages of documents in an effort to piece together the worst attack on the Capitol in two centuries.

But as the lawmakers wrap up their investigation, many are at a personal crossroads.

Jan. 6 committee’s members are on diverging political paths

Armed man arrested near Brett Kavanaugh’s home

02:30 , Oliver O’Connell

A man with at least one weapon was arrested near the Maryland home of US Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh and threatened to kill him, according to The Washington Post, citing people familiar with the investigation.

A suspect with “at least one weapon and burglary tools” was detained on a nearby street early on Wednesday in Montgomery County, according to the report, which claims that the man was angry about a forthcoming decision on the 1973 ruling in Roe v Wade and abortion access in the US.

A statement from the Supreme Court’s public information officer to The Independent also reports that a man was arrested at 1.50am.

Armed man who planned to kill Kavanaugh and himself arrested near justice’s home

Trump will ‘lose his mind’ over prime time committee hearing

02:00 , Oliver O’Connell

Andrew Feinberg and Eric Garcia write:

Allies of Mr Trump who’ve questioned the panel’s legitimacy in lawsuits seeking to block the committee from obtaining documents have pointed to the lack of GOP members when arguing that the panel is improperly constituted, but multiple federal courts have rejected such arguments.

Kurt Bardella, a former adviser to ex-GOP House Oversight Committee chairman Darrell Issa who now advises the Democratic National Committee and Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, told The Independent that Mr McCarthy’s decision to withdraw all his picks in a fit of pique was a “massive strategic error” that has left the former president without anyone to defend or run interference for him.

He also predicted the former president would “lose his mind” when he watches the select committee’s hearings and realises no one is there to interject with talking points representing his side of the argument.

The 6 Jan hearings vow to ‘change history’. Here’s what to expect

‘We Build The Wall’ trial ends in mistrial

01:00 , Oliver O’Connell

The trial of a Colorado businessman on charges that he ripped off thousands of donors who contributed $25 million to a campaign to build a wall along the southern U.S. border ended Tuesday in a mistrial after jurors could not reach a unanimous verdict.

The mistrial in the prosecution of Timothy Shea was granted by U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres after the jury reported for a third time that it could not reach a verdict on any count, saying the deadlock was “abundantly clear.” They said extended deliberations had left them “further entrenched in our opposing views.”

After previous notes, the judge urged them to try again.

Shea was left to stand trial alone after Steve Bannon, a onetime adviser to then-President Donald Trump, was pardoned. And two other defendants pleaded guilty.

‘We Build The Wall’ trial ends in mistrial; jury deadlocked

Republican Accountability Project drops new Jan 6 ad

Thursday 9 June 2022 00:30 , Oliver O’Connell

Conservative anti-Trump group The Republican Accountability Project has released a new ad about tomorrow’s public hearings on the 6 January 2021 Capitol riot.

The ad asks why it took former President Donald Trump 187 minutes to respond as Congress was under attack.

NEW AD AIRING TODAY: It’s time to learn the truth about the Capitol attack. pic.twitter.com/ivKYk9uvb7

— The Republican Accountability Project (@AccountableGOP) June 8, 2022

The big campaign question for Democrats heading into the midterms

Thursday 9 June 2022 00:00 , Oliver O’Connell

With Democrats defending narrow majorities in Congress, the divergent paths of focusing on the January 6 probe or not reflect a challenge facing the party as the House committee investigating the insurrection begins prime-time public hearings on Thursday.

Some lawmakers and fresh candidates view this as an invaluable moment to refocus the public’s attention on the violence that day — and what they consider persistent threats to democracy. But polling shows voters are more interested in personal issues like surging grocery and gas prices.

Big campaign question for Democrats: Focus on Jan. 6 or not?

Mother of Buffalo shooting victim invites lawmakers to ‘clean son’s wounds’

Wednesday 8 June 2022 23:30 , Oliver O’Connell

The mother of a survivor of the Buffalo mass shooting has invited lawmakers to come to her home and clean the wounds on her son’s bullet-ridden body if they continue to refuse to tackle America’s escalating gun violence.

Zeneta Everhart gave emotional testimony before the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday morning as lawmakers come under growing pressure to enact tighter gun control measures in the wake of a string of recent mass shootings.

Rachel Sharp reports:

Buffalo victim mom tells lawmakers to ‘clean son’s wounds’ if they won’t tackle guns

GOP lawmakers’ evolution on the Capitol riot

Wednesday 8 June 2022 23:00 , Oliver O’Connell

Most every Republican lawmaker expressed outrage in the days after the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on 6 January 2021. Some even blamed then-President Donald Trump.

But the larger GOP narrative shifted in the weeks and months that followed. Republican House leader Kevin McCarthy, who had said in the hours after the attack that it had been “the saddest day I have ever had serving as a member of this institution,” went on to visit Trump at his Florida home only weeks after the riot.

Others went further, with some Republican lawmakers defending the rioters or playing down the violence of the mob that beat police officers and smashed its way into the Capitol.

A few Republicans have consistently criticized Trump, putting their own political future in peril.

Here’s what key members of the GOP have said since January 2021.

Then and now: GOP lawmakers’ evolution on the Capitol riot

Will Trump’s key congressional allies watch the Jan 6 hearing?

Wednesday 8 June 2022 22:45 , Oliver O’Connell

The House select committee investigating the January 6 riot at the Capitol will convene for its first prime time hearing on Thursday evening. But don’t expect former president Donald Trump’s biggest apologists in the House of Representatives to be watching.

Eric Garcia spoke to some of the ex-president’s closest congressional allies:

Trump allies Boebert, Taylor Greene and Gaetz reveal how they’ll watch Jan 6 hearing

How many January 6 rioters are in jail?

Wednesday 8 June 2022 22:30 , Oliver O’Connell

According to Justice Department officials, more than 140 federal prosecutors have been working on cases related to the January 6 attack in concert with FBI agents from all 50 states in the year and a half since a pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol in hopes of preventing Congress from certifying President Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory.

Here’s how many people have been arrested since that day in 2021:

How many January 6 rioters are in jail?

Trump NY civil probe: Former president set to undergo questioning in July

Wednesday 8 June 2022 22:15 , Oliver O’Connell

Former President Donald Trump, his namesake son and his daughter Ivanka have agreed to answer questions under oath next month in the New York attorney general’s civil investigation into his business practices, unless their lawyers persuade the state’s highest court to step in.

A Manhattan judge signed off Wednesday on an agreement that calls for the Trumps to give depositions — a legal term for sworn, pretrial testimony out of court — starting July 15.

Trump set to undergo questioning in July in NY civil probe

Jared Kushner reportedly planned move to Miami before Trump had even lost election

Wednesday 8 June 2022 22:00 , Oliver O’Connell

Johanna Chisholm reports:

Kushner began plotting his move to Miami before Trump had even lost the 2020 election

House GOP to hold press conference about ‘illegitimate and partisan committee’

Wednesday 8 June 2022 21:42 , Oliver O’Connell

House Republicans will hold a press conference tomorrow morning to discuss “Speaker Pelosi’s illegitimate and partisan committee”.

Also in attendance will be those Republican lawmakers Kevin McCarthy selected to serve on the committee investigating the events of 6 January 2021 “who Speaker Pelosi rejected”, the statement reads.

NOTICED: A McCarthy presser tmrw that includes members of leadership as well as the original members the GOP leader tapped to serve on the 1/6 committee (which he later pulled all of them from serving on the panel after Pelosi blocked Jordan and Banks from serving on it) pic.twitter.com/IIdy4ae2uN

— Olivia Beavers (@Olivia_Beavers) June 8, 2022

What has Mike Pence said about the January 6 Capitol riot?

Wednesday 8 June 2022 21:27 , Oliver O’Connell

Joe Sommerlad reviews what former Vice President Mike Pence, caught up in the centre of the events of 6 January 2021, has said about the Capitol riot since that day.

What Mike Pence has said about the January 6 riot

Peter Navarro asks for 45-day delay of arraignment on contempt of Congress charges

Wednesday 8 June 2022 21:17 , Oliver O’Connell

Former Trump adviser Peter Navarro has asked for a 45-day delay of his arraignment on criminal contempt of Congress charges.

In a letter addressed to the federal judge presiding over his prosecution, Mr Navarro said he is facing “a number of hurdles” in hiring a legal team to represent him.

Peter Navarro submits letter to DC judge asking to delay his arraignment 45 days …

“To my knowledge, no high-ranking senior White House official has ever wound up in leg irons after simply standing up for constitutional principles” pic.twitter.com/4GUf7Su7Rb

— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) June 8, 2022

Mr Navarro faces the charges for defying subpoenas from the House select committee investigating the 6 January 2021 attack on the US Capitol.

In his letter, he claimed prosecutors were pushing for a “speedy trial” as part of their strategy to “exploit the unrepresented”.

At his initial court appearance, he was represented by a public defender but said he may represent himself.

Mr Navarro is currently set to appear before Judge Amit Mehta on 17 June. If a 45-day delay is granted that would move his court date to the end of July or the beginning of August.

Here’s our previous coverage:

Former Trump aide Peter Navarro indicted for contempt of Congress

Colorado to review Boebert’s use of donor funds and mileage reimbursements

Wednesday 8 June 2022 20:59 , Oliver O’Connell

The New York Times reports that state officials in Colorado are looking into allegations that Republican Representative Lauren Boebert may have inflated mileage she logged when on the 2020 campaign trail as well as using donor reimbursements to pay off tax liens on her restaurant.

The allegations stem from initial reporting in The Denver Post in February that Ms Boebert has cashed mileage reimbursement checks totalling $22,259 or equivalent to 38,712 miles. The circumference of the earth is 24,901 miles.

The lawmaker’s aides told the Times that the mileage totals had been revised and other reimbursable travel expenses had been included in the total. They also said the tax liens were paid off prior to the reimbursements being paid to Ms Boebert.

American Muckrakers PAC brought the matter to the attention of the Colorado Attorney General’s office. A spokesperson for the AG said the office would “evaluate the allegations and whether legal actions are justified”.

The same group unleashed a torrent of unflattering information about Rep Madison Cawthorn before his primary defeat in North Carolina in May.

What has Donald Trump said about the January 6 riot?

Wednesday 8 June 2022 20:43 , Oliver O’Connell

Joe Sommerlad reviews everything former President Donald Trump has said about the events of 6 January 2021.

What Donald Trump has said about the January 6 riot

Which lawmakers are on the January 6 committee?

Wednesday 8 June 2022 20:35 , Oliver O’Connell

The spectacle is naturally going to elevate the panel’s members to a higher level of public notoriety – so in advance of the incendiary sessions, here’s a rundown of who they are.

Who are the members of the January 6 select committee?

Key questions for the Jan 6 hearings to answer about the Capitol riot

Wednesday 8 June 2022 20:24 , Oliver O’Connell

Over the year and a half since a mob of former president Donald Trump supporters assaulted police officers and overran the seat of America’s legislative branch in hopes of stopping certification of Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory, the nine-member select committee has amassed a staff of more than 40 personnel — including many investigators and former prosecutors — working in teams to untangle multiple lines of inquiry regarding the facts and circumstances which led to the worst attack on the Capitol since Major General Robert Ross ordered British troops to set it ablaze in 1814.

Here are some questions the panel will need to answer over the course of its’ public hearings:

Four key questions for the January 6 committee hearings to answer

Trumps must sit for New York AG deposition on 15 July

Wednesday 8 June 2022 20:19 , Oliver O’Connell

Former President Donald Trump, his son Donald Trump Jr, and his daughter Ivanka Trump must sit for deposition in the investigation of the Trump Organization brought against them by New York Attorney General Letitia James.

The Trumps have been ordered to appear for testimony beginning on Friday 15 June, concluding the following week unless a stay is issued by the New York Court of Appeals.

News—

Ex-Pres. Donald Trump, son Donald Trump Jr. and daughter Ivanka Trump must sit for deposition in @NewYorkStateAG‘s investigation on July 15, if NY’s top court doesn’t intervene first.

Doc: https://t.co/1JwGHsOZ5n

Background, @LawCrimeNews https://t.co/HD3CdcM6v7 pic.twitter.com/fb0ZmtAmhx

— Adam Klasfeld (@KlasfeldReports) June 8, 2022

An application for a stay must be made by 13 June, any opposition must be filed within 10 days, and any reply papers filed no later than 30 June.

Here’s our recent reporting on the case and background information:

Judge holds Trump in contempt, requires him to pay $10k a day he flouts subpoena

Matthew McConaughey says ‘extreme right and extreme left’ blocking progress on guns

Wednesday 8 June 2022 20:05 , Oliver O’Connell

Matthew McConaughey told Fox News that the “extreme right and extreme left” have too much influence in America, and are blocking consensus on urgent issues like gun control.

“I think we’re being told we’re more divided than we are,” he told host Bret Baier on Tuesday, part of the actor’s Washington tour as he hopes to push lawmakers to enact new gun control rules after the mass shooting in his hometown of Uvalde.

Josh Marcus reports:

Matthew McConaughey tells Fox News ‘extreme right and extreme left’ slowing progress