Jan. 6 Hearings: Donald Trump Could Face Multiple Criminal Referrals to DOJ -Rep. Liz Cheney
Jan. 6 hearings have tackled the possibility of making criminal referrals to federal prosecutors involving former U.S. President Donald Trump and his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.
NBC News reported that committee members noted that they can see multiple referrals to the Justice Department based on evidence they have found while investigating the events surrounding the Jan. 6 attack. Meanwhile, no formal decision has been made regarding the matter.
Rep. Liz Cheney, Jan. 6 panel vice-chair, said that they will make a decision as a committee about whether to alert the Justice Department to possible crimes it has uncovered. She added that the DOJ does not have to wait for the committee to make a criminal referral and that there could be more than one criminal referral.
The vice-chair of the Jan. 6 committee also referred to Cassidy Hutchinson's detailed outbursts of rage from Trump on the day he urged supporters to march to the Capitol. Hutchinson is the former top aide to Mark Meadows when he was White House chief of staff.
Trump reportedly said that he does not "f---ing care that they have weapons" as he urged aides to remove magnetometers near the White House before he addressed a "Stop the Steal" rally.
Criminal Referrals Against Donald Trump
Rep. Liz Cheney's remarks about making criminal referrals against Trump came after the committee's chairman, Bennie Thompson, once said he did not expect the panel to indicate whether or not it would make a recommendation for federal prosecutors to charge Trump.
Cheney said that she, Thompson, and other committee members could change their minds about the first position after there was sworn testimony that Trump knowingly sent armed supporters to the Capitol, according to The Guardian report.
Cheney asked rhetorically, "what kind of man known a mob is armed and sends the mob to attack the Capitol?"
She added that Trump's own vice president, Mike Pence, as well as the Congress were under threat.
Cheney pointed out that the Justice Department does not need a recommendation from the Jan. 6 panel to charge Trump. However, the House select committee made such referrals for former Trump aides Steve Bannon, Peter Navarro, Mark Meadows, and Dan Scavino, who refused to cooperate with the investigation.
Donald Trump and the Jan. 6 Hearings
The Washington Post noted that an ABC News/Ipsos poll released suggested that there is a slight increase in the percentage of Americans and Republicans who thought the former president should face criminal charges. Fifty-eight percent overall and 19% among Republicans.
A Yahoo News/YouGov poll showed that relatively few Republicans are even paying attention to Jan. 6 hearings, and significantly fewer trust the information they are getting. Only 26% say they had heard and believed the news that Attorney General William P. Barr told Trump his voter fraud claims were "bullshit."
Barr testified under oath to it, and the committee showed that testimony.
This article is owned by Latin Post.
Written by: Mary Webber
WATCH: Jan. 6 committee could make Trump criminal referral: Rep. Liz Cheney - from ABC News
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