The January 6 committee is weighing up calling in Donald Trump, interviewing Mike Pence and what to do with GOP lawmakers who defied subpoenas.
The panel is under a rapidly-approaching deadline to wrap up its work before January 3, 2023, when a new Congress is sworn into session.
If Republicans win control of the House of Representatives, as many polls in indicate, they are expected to disband the committee.
Before then, the nine lawmakers on the panel face a series of decisions, including:
- Should they call Trump to testify?
- Will Pence sit for an interview?
- Should other witnesses – like former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and Ginni Thomas, a conservative activist and wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas – be called before the panel?
- What should they do about Republican lawmakers who have defied the panel’s subpoenas?
- And when should they release their report on their findings?
With barely 16 weeks left to work, the committee will soon announce additional public hearings, finalize efforts to obtain the testimony of two crucial Secret Service witnesses and issue legislative recommendations designed to prevent future attempted disruptions to the transfer of power, Politico reported.
Lawmakers on the committee investigating January 6th will meet Tuesday to discuss their plans until the end of the year, which could include more public hearings – above the committee held a public hearing on July 12, 2022
It’s unclear how outside factors will affect their last months on the job including Trump dealing with the legal ramifications of his having classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, Georgia’s investigation into attempts to overturn the election results in that state, and lawmakers’ own re-election worries as the November congressional elections approach.
Lawmakers on the panel are meeting Tuesday to talk next steps.
The meeting is expected to include discussion on whether Gingrich and/or Thomas will testify, Time magazine reported.
Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland told the news magazine there could ‘two or three’ more public hearings this fall.
At least one is expected for September with October being eyed for a second date. The panel held eight hearings in June and July.
One hearing will focus on the committee’s recommendations for how to prevent January 6th from happening again and to block any attempts to overturn a presidential election.
‘I would expect at least one hearing on the continuing threats to democracy in America and what needs to be done legislatively at the federal level and at other levels of government in order to fortify ourselves against coups, insurrections, political violence, and attempts to sabotage elections,’ Raskin said. ‘I would hope that we have as thorough a discussion about these structural problems as we have had about the individual dangers created by Donald Trump and his movement.’
Additionally, Republican Rep. Lynne Cheney indicated to ABC News last month that the panel would like to hear from the former president but it remains unclear if that will happen.
Cheney, who lost her August GOP primary after becoming a Trump target, will no longer be a member of Congress as of Jan. 3rd, leaving the last few weeks of committee work as her congressional legacy.
Pence hasn’t ruled out an appearance before the panel, saying last month he would ‘consider it.’
The committee is weighing whether to get testimony from former President Donald Trump
It’s unclear if former Vice President Mike Pence will testify before the committee
Another figure of interest is Tony Ornato, a former Secret Service agent who also served as Trump’s deputy chief of staff. Ornato has already spoken with the panel’s investigators, but they want him back to talk more about what happened with Trump on January 6th and the then-president’s wish to join his supporters in their march on the Capitol.
‘We do want to talk to him again,’ Democratic Rep. Zoe Lofgren, a panel member, told CNN. ‘There are a lot of things that just don’t add up, to me, on what the Secret Service has said and the material that we’re getting.’
Committee members also have subpoenaed several Republican members of Congress who were in touch with Trump on the 6th or supported his objections to the 2020 election results, including House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy of Calufornia along with GOP Reps. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, Jim Jordan of Ohio, Andy Biggs of Arizona, and Mo Brooks of Alabama.
Those lawmakers are refusing to comply and the panel is weighing its response.
The Democratic-controlled House could vote to hold them in contempt of Congress. From there, the Justice Department would decide whether or not to formally pursue charges.