The House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 attack has begun its second day of hearings as it looks to break down what happened when hundreds of Donald Trump supporters stormed the Capitol trying to overturn the 2020 election.
Here is the latest:
Updated 1:00 p.m. EST — The committee wrapped up its Tuesday session with the second round of witnesses speaking on submitted evidence of election fraud and their review of it.
One witness, Al Schmidt, a city commissioner from Philadelphia, gave testimony on what happened after he was called out by the former president on Twitter when Schmidt found no proof that there were more than 800 plus votes from dead people in the city.
The claim had come from Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani, and depositions from other Trump lawyers backed Schmidt that the claims were baseless.
Schmidt shared that his family began receiving death threats by name, as he was called a Rhino for not supporting the president's claim, despite going through every claim and finding there wasn't sufficient evidence.
The second round of witnesses broke down that the former president's lawsuits challenging the election results were thrown out because there wasn't enough evidence to continue. Despite this, Trump continued to push his narrative.
Committee Chairman Thompson closed the session with a collection of videos from Trump supporters outside the Capitol on Jan. 6 who were repeating claims that the former president had shared in the weeks prior.
The House Committee will hold its third public hearing session this week on Wednesday.
Updated 12:15 p.m. EST — The committee started late but has begun showing that several officials in his campaign and cabinet repeatedly told the former president that his claims the election was stolen were baseless.
The morning began with Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) questioning Fox News political editor Chris Stirewalt and showing depositions from former Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien, Mayor Rudy Giuliani, former Attorney General Bill Barr, and even the former president’s daughter Ivanka Trump.
Stepien shared in his deposition that there seemed to be two different groups within Trump’s camp, those supporting his claims led by Giuliani and Trump attorney Sydney Powell, and “Team Normal,” which had Stepien and Ivanka Trump on it.
Stepien even claimed that Giuliani -- who was allegedly drunk-- was adamant on election night that the former president go out and claim he had won the election, despite the former campaign manager knowing that to be untrue and advising against it.
The depositions depict how the president was told he had lost the election and needed to accept it but could not.
The morning's highlight was deposition clips from Barr, who testified about his final moments working under Trump. He even shared that he had watched Trump’s 2,000 Mules film, which he surmised had not shown there was widespread voter fraud.
Updated 10:30 a.m. EST — Slotted to speak on Monday was former Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien who pulled out at the last minute, citing a family emergency, according to the panel.
The committee was told on Monday morning that Stepien’s wife was in labor, according to a person briefed on the matter, who spoke on anonymity before the hearing.
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Still expected on Monday is former Fox News political editor Chris Stirewalt, along with hundreds of hours of depositions that have been collected. Stirewalt was covering the 2020 election and was fired after calling Arizona for Joe Biden early.
The proceedings are expected to reveal new information about the attack on the U.S. Capitol. The committee has conducted more than 1,000 depositions and interviews, with more scheduled, and has analyzed more than 140,000 documents as part of its investigation, according to Axios.
“Donald Trump was at the center of this conspiracy,” Thompson said. “And ultimately, Donald Trump, the President of the United States, spurred a mob of domestic enemies of the Constitution to march down the Capitol and subvert American democracy.
“January 6th was the culmination of an attempted coup,” Thompson added. “A brazen attempt, as one rioter put it shortly after January 6th, to overthrow the government. The violence was no accident, it represents Trump’s last, and most desperate chance to hold the transfer of power.”
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