When Rep. Bennie Thompson first stated that the House select committee on Jan. 6 intended to send referrals for criminal charges to the Department of Justice, he said the committee was in general agreement, but hadn’t yet determined just how many charges it would forward.
“I wish I could tell you one, two, three, four,” said Thompson, “but that’s all still being discussed.”
How about five? Because CNN is now reporting that, in addition to Donald Trump, the select committee is considering referring charges against four other members of Trump’s campaign. That includes: former chief of staff Mark Meadows, attorney John Eastman, would-be attorney general Jeffrey Clark, and former attorney Rudy Giuliani. The committee is expected to hold a virtual meeting of all members on Sunday, and that’s likely to be the time when a final determination on charges is made.
“I think the more we looked at the body of evidence that we had collected,” said Thompson, “we felt that while we’re not in the business of investigating people for criminal activities, we just couldn’t overlook some of them.”
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In general, for charges to be referred from a congressional committee to the DOJ, those charges have to directly involve the operation of Congress. In the past, House committees have forwarded referrals for acts such as failure to appear in response to a Congressional subpoena, or committing perjury when testifying under oath before a committee.
On Wednesday, Rep. Adam Schiff indicated that Trump could be charged with what he called the “ultimate crime against the Congress”—a criminal conspiracy to obstruct the Congress in its work. It seems likely that the decision the committee is making now revolves around which other members of Trump’s team took criminal actions as part of that conspiracy.
However, it’s likely there will be additional charges. For example, Mark Meadows never turned over all the documents that the committee had subpoenaed, including communications on Jan. 6. He may have managed to run the clock out on the committee, but that doesn’t mean he will avoid paying some penalty.
Rep. Jamie Raskin, who is in charge of the subcommittee which will make these referrals, has stated that any conspiracy charges will be dealt with separately from other charges the committee sends to the Justice Department. Which would seem to make it highly likely that Meadows, along with others, might face multiple charges related to refusing testimony or withholding documents when the vote is tallied on Sunday.
Both Eastman and Clark spoke to the committee, but both invoked their Fifth Amendment rights against self incrimination, severely limiting any information gained in their interviews. It’s clear that the broad investigation underway at the Department of Justice under special counsel Jack Smith is already looking into the scheme cooked up by Eastman to interfere with the final tally of electoral votes in Congress. Any referral from the House on that point might not add any impetus to the DOJ investigation, though it would put the House committee on record in their determination.
Giuliani, whose license to practice law has been suspended in D.C. and New York, and who faces possible disbarment in hearings that began this week, did speak with the committee at length, though it’s unclear how much information he provided as much of that testimony has not yet been made public.
With Republicans certain to end the committee’s investigation when they take power, these charges are less about seeing Trump and his team face conviction—that part is more up to Smith and the ongoing investigation by the DOJ, which will definitely not end in January. Instead the referrals will be another opportunity, perhaps the final opportunity, for the committee to get some of its findings on record, and to make it clear that the results of their investigation show that Donald Trump was the leader of a criminal conspiracy conducted at the highest possible level.
Trump and his MAGA extremists are not going anywhere, but neither are we. Chip in $5 to help Daily Kos fight to defend democracy and all progressive values.
“I wish I could tell you one, two, three, four,” said Thompson, “but that’s all still being discussed.”
How about five? Because CNN is now reporting that, in addition to Donald Trump, the select committee is considering referring charges against four other members of Trump’s campaign. That includes: former chief of staff Mark Meadows, attorney John Eastman, would-be attorney general Jeffrey Clark, and former attorney Rudy Giuliani. The committee is expected to hold a virtual meeting of all members on Sunday, and that’s likely to be the time when a final determination on charges is made.
“I think the more we looked at the body of evidence that we had collected,” said Thompson, “we felt that while we’re not in the business of investigating people for criminal activities, we just couldn’t overlook some of them.”
Campaign Action
In general, for charges to be referred from a congressional committee to the DOJ, those charges have to directly involve the operation of Congress. In the past, House committees have forwarded referrals for acts such as failure to appear in response to a Congressional subpoena, or committing perjury when testifying under oath before a committee.
On Wednesday, Rep. Adam Schiff indicated that Trump could be charged with what he called the “ultimate crime against the Congress”—a criminal conspiracy to obstruct the Congress in its work. It seems likely that the decision the committee is making now revolves around which other members of Trump’s team took criminal actions as part of that conspiracy.
However, it’s likely there will be additional charges. For example, Mark Meadows never turned over all the documents that the committee had subpoenaed, including communications on Jan. 6. He may have managed to run the clock out on the committee, but that doesn’t mean he will avoid paying some penalty.
Rep. Jamie Raskin, who is in charge of the subcommittee which will make these referrals, has stated that any conspiracy charges will be dealt with separately from other charges the committee sends to the Justice Department. Which would seem to make it highly likely that Meadows, along with others, might face multiple charges related to refusing testimony or withholding documents when the vote is tallied on Sunday.
Both Eastman and Clark spoke to the committee, but both invoked their Fifth Amendment rights against self incrimination, severely limiting any information gained in their interviews. It’s clear that the broad investigation underway at the Department of Justice under special counsel Jack Smith is already looking into the scheme cooked up by Eastman to interfere with the final tally of electoral votes in Congress. Any referral from the House on that point might not add any impetus to the DOJ investigation, though it would put the House committee on record in their determination.
Giuliani, whose license to practice law has been suspended in D.C. and New York, and who faces possible disbarment in hearings that began this week, did speak with the committee at length, though it’s unclear how much information he provided as much of that testimony has not yet been made public.
With Republicans certain to end the committee’s investigation when they take power, these charges are less about seeing Trump and his team face conviction—that part is more up to Smith and the ongoing investigation by the DOJ, which will definitely not end in January. Instead the referrals will be another opportunity, perhaps the final opportunity, for the committee to get some of its findings on record, and to make it clear that the results of their investigation show that Donald Trump was the leader of a criminal conspiracy conducted at the highest possible level.
Trump and his MAGA extremists are not going anywhere, but neither are we. Chip in $5 to help Daily Kos fight to defend democracy and all progressive values.