Commission aides say the evidence will show that Mr. Trump was at the center of a “coordinated multi-step effort to overturn the results of the 2020 election” that resulted in a large number of his supporters invading Congress halls and disrupt the official countdown, which is a key step in the peaceful transfer of US presidential power. The hearing at 8 p.m. in prime time is the first of a series of six scheduled for this month, during which the commission will present to the Americans the full magnitude and importance of Mr. Trump’s systematic effort to cancel the 2020 election and stay in power. “We will show the multifaceted effort to overthrow one presidential election, how one strategy to overthrow the election led to another, culminating in a violent attack on our democracy,” said Adam B. Schiff, a Democrat in California and a member of the committee. “It’s an important story and needs to be told to ensure it never happens again.” The inaugural hearing will include live testimony from a documentary filmmaker, Nick Quested, who was with the Proud Boys during the raid, and a Capitol police officer, Caroline Edwards, who was injured as rioters stormed a rally. and invaded inside. The committee also plans to present what aides called a small but “substantial” portion of the recorded interviews its investigators conducted with more than 1,000 witnesses, including senior Trump White House officials, campaign officials and others. Trump. Mr. Trump’s eldest daughter Ivanka Trump, Jared Kouchner’s son-in-law and Donald Trump Jr.’s son are among the high-profile witnesses who have testified before the commission. Mr Quested, a British documentary who has worked in war zones, including Afghanistan, spent much of the post-election period filming members of the Proud Boys, including former group chairman Enrique Tarrio, who has been accused of conspiracy the commotion. Mr. Quested accompanied the Proud Boys to pro-Trump rallies in Washington in November and December 2020 and was on the ground with team members on Jan. 6, when several played a key role in the Capitol breach. Mr. Quested was also present with a camera crew the day before the attack when Mr. Tarrio met with a small group of pro-Trump activists in an underground car park near the Capitol, including Stewart Rhodes, its founder and leader. Oath Keepers Militia. Later in the day, Jan. 6, Mr. Questd and his crew were with Mr. Tario in Baltimore, videotaping him as he responded in real time to the news of the uprising. Ms Edwards, a respected Capitol police officer, is believed to be the first officer to be injured in the Capitol attack when she suffered a concussion during a roadblock attack at the Capitol base. A man accused of involvement in the attack, Ryan Samsel, told the FBI during an interview more than a year ago that shortly before approaching the roadblock, a senior Proud Boys member, Joseph Biggs, had been encouraged to confront the police. Other police officers around the building recall hearing police officer Edwards calling for help on the radio – one of the first signs that mob violence had begun to engulf the police presence. Months after the attack, she continued to have fainting episodes believed to be linked to her injuries. An aide to the commission said Mr Quested and Officer Edwards would describe their experiences, including “what they saw and heard from the rioters who tried to seize the Capitol and try to stop the transfer of power”. The commission’s investigators believe Mr. Quested overheard conversations between the Proud Boys during the January 6 planning. Mississippi Democrat Bennie Thompson and committee chairwoman Liz Cheney, a Wyoming Republican and vice president, are expected to lead the committee’s presentation of evidence and cross-examine witnesses. The summit will mark the beginning of an ambitious effort by the commission, which was formed last July after Republicans blocked the formation of a non-partisan commission to investigate the attack, to tell Americans the full story of an unprecedented attack on US democracy. a deadly uprising, a referral and a crisis of confidence in the political system that continues to resonate. The hearings take place five months before the midterm elections in which the majority of Democrats are at stake, at a time when they want to create a strong opposition between them and the Republicans who allowed and embraced Mr. Trump, including members of Congress who supported the efforts. to overturn the election. Other hearings are expected to focus on various aspects of the commission’s investigation, including Mr. Trump’s promotion of the lie that the election was rigged, despite being told his allegations were false. his efforts to abuse the Ministry of Justice to help him cling to power. a campaign of pressure on Vice President Mike Pence to reject the legitimate electoral vote for Joseph R. Biden Jr. how the mob gathered and how it landed in Washington on January 6th. and the fact that Mr. Trump did nothing to stop the violence for more than three hours while the attack was ongoing. The commission has not yet committed itself to the full list of witnesses to the six televised hearings and is still discussing the possibility of public testimony with several prominent Trump-era officials. Witnesses formally approached by the commission to testify next week include Jeffrey A. Rosen, the former acting attorney general, and Richard P. Donoghue, the former deputy attorney general, according to two people who were briefed on the matter. Both Mr Rosen and Mr Donoghue have told a number of congressional committees that Mr Trump and his allies pressured the ministry to falsely claim to have rigged voters and to use force to undo the election results. . Last May, Mr. Rosen attended a public hearing of the House Oversight and Reform Committee on the events leading up to the Capitol attack. The committee is still in informal talks with Pat A. Cipollone, a former White House adviser, and Byung J. Pak, a former U.S. attorney in Atlanta, who resigned abruptly on Jan. 4, 2021, after learning that Mr. Trump was planning to fire him because he found no voter fraud, according to sources familiar with the matter. Mr Cipollone could address a range of issues, including Mr. Trump’s efforts to pressure the Justice Department and his reluctance to accept the election results, despite officials repeatedly failing to reveal fraud. Mr. Pack could have information about Georgia, a battlefield state in which Mr. Trump was particularly focused. Alan Feuer and Katie Benner contributed to the petition.
