The US House committee investigating the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol by supporters of Donald Trump voted Thursday to issue a subpoena against the former president, a move that could result in criminal charges if you choose not to comply. The House’s seven Democrats and two Republicans voted 9-0 to issue a subpoena for Trump to provide documents and testify under oath about the Jan. 6 invasion.
“You must be held accountable. You must be held accountable for your actions. You must hold accountable the police officers who risk their lives and bodies to defend our democracy. You must take responsibility for those millions of Americans whose votes you wanted to win.” pull.” His plan is to stay in power.
Trump’s representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The vote came after the committee spent more than two hours advocating — through member statements, documents, and recorded testimony — that Trump planned in advance to deny his defeat in the 2020 election, did not stop thousands of supporters from storming the Capitol and continuing to make his false claims that the election was stolen, even when close advisers told him he had lost.
Federal law makes failure to comply with a congressional subpoena for testimony or documents a misdemeanor, punishable by one to 12 months in prison. If the subpoena issued by the select committee is ignored, House members must vote on whether to refer it to the Justice Department, which has the power to decide whether or not to bring charges.
Former Trump aide Steve Bannon will be sentenced next week after a jury found him in contempt of congressional charges for failing to comply with a committee subpoena. But the Justice Department declined to indict another, Mark Meadows, whom the House also suggested should be prosecuted.
Federal prosecutors are also investigating the former president’s removal of classified White House documents at the end of his term, and have warned that they believe they have not yet recovered all of the seized documents.
The House Committee has been investigating the attack on the Capitol for more than a year and has interviewed more than 1,000 witnesses. The raid resulted in more than 140 police officers being injured and several fatalities.
