‘Trump abused powers to overturn 2020 poll’
Ex-leader ‘lied, bullied, betrayed oath’ to stay in White House, committee notes
WASHINGTON—The House committee probing the assault on the US Capitol laid out a searing, prime-time indictment on Thursday of Donald Trump’s refusal to halt or condemn the violence and insisted he should be held legally accountable for a gross dereliction of presidential duty.
Committee chair Bennie Thompson, speaking at the televised finale of a series of public hearings into the attack, said Trump “recklessly blazed a path of lawlessness and corruption” as he sought to overturn the results of the 2020 US election.
Addressing the committee virtually because he has COVID-19, Thompson said there must be “accountability” for what he called an attack on democracy.
“The select committee has told a story of a president who did everything in his power to overturn an election,” Thompson said. “He lied, he bullied, he betrayed his oath.”
Live on prime time
Rep. Elaine Luria said the series of committee hearings have “shown the many ways in which President Trump tried to stop the peaceful transfer of power in the days leading up to Jan. 6.”
“With each step of his plan he betrayed his oath of office and was derelict in his duty,” Luria said.
The panel, made up of seven Democrats and two Republicans who voted to impeach Trump after the violent insurrection, is holding its eighth public hearing into the attack on the Capitol.
Lawmakers are examining Trump’s actions on the day, starting with a fiery speech to his supporters near the White House claiming the November 2020 election was stolen and extending until the moment when he finally told the rioters they were “very special” but needed to go home.
The panel has subpoenaed numerous advisers and aides to Trump as it seeks to determine whether he or his associates had a role in planning or encouraging the bid by his supporters to prevent certification of Democrat Joe Biden’s election victory.
The committee’s opening hearing was also held in prime time, when television audiences are largest.
Cameras on hand
Two witnesses delivered live testimony on Thursday: former deputy White House press secretary Sarah Matthews and Matthew Pottinger, who served on the National Security Council.
“If the president had wanted to make a statement and address the American people, he could have been on camera almost immediately,” Matthews testified. “If he had wanted to make an address from the Oval Office, we could have assembled the White House press corps within minutes.”
Matthews and Pottinger both resigned on Jan. 6 as Trump supporters stormed the Capitol.
Previous committee hearings have focused on Trump’s attempt to sway election officials in swing states that Biden narrowly won and pressure put on Vice President Mike Pence not to certify the Electoral College results.
More than 850 people have been arrested in connection with the attack on Congress, which left at least five people dead and 140 police officers injured.