Well, it’s over. The Jan. 6 committee has wrapped up its investigation and published its findings online for reporters to comb through right before the holidays. The final report provided more insight as to how deep the conspiracy to prop up the Big Lie went in Trumpworld.
The House select committee also published 11 recommendations for what Congress can do to prevent another insurrection from brewing. Some of the reforms are already underway, while others may take a little more legwork. Here are some of the notable suggestions they made:
Rep.-elect George Santos’ “family firm” that supposedly managed $80 million in assets was initially registered at a gynecologist’s office in a Florida office park.
With the release this week of its final report and of 34 deposition transcripts, the Jan. 6 committee has provided a fuller picture of who cooperated with its investigation – and who did not.
The committee had offered some clues about how many witnesses had taken the Fifth. Back in June, committee vice chair Liz Cheney (R-WY) hinted at the scope of noncooperation: “To date, more than 30 witnesses called before this committee … have invoked their Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination.” She wasn’t bullshitting, either.
According to TPM’s running count, at least 32 witnesses called before the committee pleaded the Fifth at least once.
Here’s the complete list:
Christopher Barcenas, Proud Boy and member of Miami-Dade’s Republican Executive Committee
Kathy Berden, a Republican National Committee member from Michigan
Alexander Bruesewitz, conservative political consultant
Patrick Casey, leader of the alt-right America First movement
James Waldron, former U.S. Army colonel who spread misinformation about election fraud
Kelli Ward, chairwoman of Arizona’s Republican Party
Garrett Ziegler, former White House aide
Michael Flynn, Trump’s former national security advisor
The 5th Amendment protection against self incrimination has famously been lampooned by Donald Trump, who once said that only “the mob” pleads the Fifth, then proceeded to do so himself 400 times during a single deposition back in August.
This is the last Morning Memo of 2022. We’ll see you back here Jan. 3. Happiest of holidays to you and yours.
The Jan. 6 Committee Had What It Took
The release late last night of its 845-page final report marks the culmination of an extraordinary investigation into the most dire threat to the Republic since the Civil War.
I want to step back for a moment and survey how we got to this point, nearly two years after the Jan. 6 attack.
Popular history will likely compress the events of the past several years into a familiar arc: bad things happened, good people stood up, normalcy was restored, congratulations all around. We know that’s not what happened and not how it worked.
A dominant theme of the Trump era is the reluctance and in some ways the inability of American political culture to grasp the threat he poses. The period since the Jan. 6 attack is emblematic of the slow, halting, inconstant reaction to the threat even after it exploded in nearly catastrophic violence:
A comprehensive congressional investigation of Jan. 6 was not a given and almost didn’t happen.
The Justice Department squandered much of 2021 before it began actively investigating the entire scheme to subvert the 2020 election.
The Jan. 6 committee as it was eventually constituted was the product of a reluctance and hesitation even among Democrats. Its eventual effectiveness in unearthing important evidence and writing a narrative that stuck in the national consciousness was not at all clear at the outset and certainly wasn’t a given. Much of its effectiveness in the end was owed to Republican Vice Chair Liz Cheney (WY).
Still, it is gratifying to see some of the progress of the last two years.
Remember How Bad It Was
In January 2021, TPM had its hair on fire that the attack on Jan. 6 not be seen in isolation, but rather as part of a larger scheme to undermine democracy, delegitimize the election results in advance, and then ultimately throw out those results.
At the time, I warned: “The select committee seems determined to focus on Jan. 6 as a security breach, rather than the culmination of a months-long effort to delegitimize, undermine, interfere with and ultimately overturn the 2020 election.
Where We Are Now
Through the painstaking work of gathering evidence, interviewing witnesses, reviewing documents, and unlocking electronic communications, the Jan. 6 committee began to grasp the full scope of the 2020 subversion effort.
Belatedly, the Justice Department caught on to what the Jan. 6 committee was up to.
With its televised hearings in the summer of 2022, the committee seized the national consciousness and began to craft a public narrative for Jan. 6 that showed it was the culmination of a much broader scheme.
Liz Cheney’s emphasis on using Republican witnesses and casting Trump’s followers as patriots duped by his con opened the public mind to a new way of looking at the attack.
I happen to think that the raid on Mar-a-Lago in August and the emerging details of Trump’s mishandling of government and classified records had the important effect of reinforcing the newly emergent narrative by demonstrating anew in a clear, direct, and simple way that Trump is a chronic scofflaw, a menace, and a threat.
Where Do We Go From Here?
Congress didn’t do everything to combat Trump that I would have liked to have seen, but it did impeach him twice, it is about to update the Electoral Count Act, and the Jan. 6 committee’s work speaks for itself. With Republicans taking over the House next month, Congress’ role here is largely done. All eyes turn to the Justice Department and to a lesser extent the state investigation in Georgia.
The window for the Justice Department to act is two years. The appointment of Jack Smith as special counsel improves the odds that the investigations underway now won’t be shut down if Republicans reclaim the White House in 2024. But it remains a relatively small window, especially if you’re prosecuting a former president.
The true imperative for the Justice Department all along has not been to prosecute and convict Trump; it’s been merely to investigate him. Once it did that, the facts and evidence would lead where they may. That’s all you can ask for: just give it a good look. That is finally underway in what appears from the outside to be a comprehensive and thorough investigation.
Vindicating The Rule Of Law Is Essential But Insufficient
Accountability for a president who uses the great power of his office to flout and undermine the rule of law is essential, but the rule of law will not long survive if its only defenders are federal prosecutors. It must be deeply embedded in the political and popular culture.
In the current moment, one of the two major political parties is actively opposed to the rule of law as a guiding democratic principle. It has hitched itself to violent extremists and made the acquisition and retention of power by any means its party platform.
The Republic will remain in peril so long as the democratic consensus is broken. Armed and violent extremists retreated after Jan. 6, but have been lurking just beyond the horizon, waiting to pounce. Factions that would put their own power above democratic principle remain a threat.
Above all else, it is acutely clear that the Republic as we know it will not persist if the White House is occupied by someone who intertwines his political fortunes with violent extremism, treats the office as his personal property, uses his constitutional powers to secure power to himself, and refuses to defend the Constitution.
Other Reactions To The Jan. 6 Committee Report
Joyce Vance: “[T]the report is a compelling document that should aid people with common sense in understanding how we process Trump’s conduct following the 2020 election.”
Ryan Goodman thread on the potential legal jeopardy facing Stefan Passantino, Cassidy’s Hutchinson’s first lawyer.
Insider: Cassidy Hutchinson Googled “Watergate” to help decide whether to cooperate with January 6 committee`
Lawrence O’Donnell unwinds the incredible story of Cassidy Hutchinson:
The January 6 Committee released its final report Thursday, the culmination of more than one and a half years of investigative work into the causes and planning of the Capitol insurrection.
TPM Reader LC asks the following and I’ll try to answer …
I’m loving your coverage of George Santos in NY-3, and I’m wondering: Why are we only hearing about all this now? Don’t political candidates do oppo research? Obviously none of that was done, not even a little bit, since George Santos’s entire identity would collapse in the face of a not particularly vigorous sneeze. My question for you or your readers who may know – who is normally responsible for making sure oppo research happens? Is that the candidates themselves (Robert Zimmerman in this case), or DNC/RNC.
The first thing I would say is that contrary to what some readers are telling me, this part of the story is hardly being ignored. It’s almost the first part of every discussion I hear about this. For some it’s a failure of the Democratic Party; for others it’s a failure of journalism, gutted local news and so forth. But I want to start on the question itself: who is responsible for making sure the oppo research happens?
Yesterday I joked — well, maybe half-joked? — that with all we’ve learned about Rep.-Elect George Santos, is he even gay? Being an “openly gay” Latino Republican has been a central part of his campaign pitch. He doesn’t fit the mold of a Trumper and that, he argues, “scares the left.” Now, it’s a fairly complicated and inevitably subjective and personal matter whether someone is gay or straight. But The Daily Beast managed to dig up the fact that until just two weeks prior to announcing his run for office he was married to a woman.
A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo.
Big Trouble Looming For Fox News
Dominion Voting Systems seems to be gaining some traction in its billion-dollar defamation lawsuit against Fox News over its broadcast of bogus conspiracy theories blaming the company for 2020 election fraud.
The company presented evidence in court Wednesday to establish that Fox News figures knew the claims about Dominion were false but aired them anyway.
“I did not believe it for one second,” Sean Hannity reportedly said in his Dominion deposition.
The NYT:
Mr. Hannity’s disclosure — along with others that emerged from court on Wednesday about what Fox News executives and hosts really believed as their network became one of the loudest megaphones for lies about the 2020 election — is among the strongest evidence yet to emerge publicly that some Fox employees knew that what they were broadcasting was false.
Fox News has denied Dominion’s claims.
The Hits Keep Coming For George Santos
We have learned more about serial fabulist George Santos, the incoming GOP congressman from a Queens district, and none of it is good:
The Forward: Congressman-elect George Santos lied about grandparents fleeing anti-Jewish persecution during WWII.
The Republican Jewish Coalition reacted: “These allegations, if true, are deeply troubling,” coalition director Matt Brooks said. “Given their seriousness, the congressman-elect owes the public an explanation, and we look forward to hearing it.”
Daily Beast: ‘Openly Gay’ Rep.-Elect George Santos Didn’t Disclose Divorce With Woman
Yes, Obama And Biden Were Audited By The IRS
Many of you have asked. The NYT answers: I.R.S. Routinely Audited Obama and Biden, Raising Questions Over Delays for Trump
The Jan. 6 committee released 34 interview transcripts from its investigation late Wednesday. Notable figures whose interviews were released included John Eastman, Jeffrey Clark, Michael Flynn, Roger Stone, Alex Jones, and Charlie Kirk.
The main highlight is that so many of the witnesses pleaded the 5th and refused to answer any questions.
A few other eyepoppers:
Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) confronted former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio about calling her a “cunt.”
Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) was apparently texting the Stop the Steal group chat while the Jan. 6 attack was still underway: “We’re still on lockdown in the congressional office.”
So Many Layers To Zelensky’s White House Visit
WASHINGTON, DC – DECEMBER 21: U.S. President Joe Biden (R) meets with President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office of the White House on December 21, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky finally got his White House meeting, Philip Bump notes, as he runs us back through Zelensky’s travails that led to First Trump Impeachment.
Zelensky’s Speech To Congress
Watch the full speech:
How Republicans Received Zelensky
A series of embarrassments and indignities:
Donald Trump, Jr., set the tone for the day, tweeting: “Zelensky is basically an ungrateful international welfare queen.”
House Republicans were reportedly scarce for Zelensky’s address to a joint session of Congress: 86 out of 213 GOP House members showed up.
Reps. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and Lauren Boebert (R-CO) blew off Capitol police and refused to go through security screening for Zelensky’s speech.
Russia Not Behind Pipeline Sabotage?
Didn’t see this coming: U.S. and European officials are privately doubtful that Russia is to blame for the attack on the Nord Stream pipelines.
Inside The Mar-a-Lago Investigation
WaPo goes deep inside the apparent tensions between Justice Department prosecutors and FBI agents in the Mar-a-Lago investigation. What emerges is a disturbing picture of FBI agents tentative about being caught in the wringer of another Trump investigation. No one wants to be the next Peter Strzok, which is understandable on a personal level but difficult to square with their professional obligations. It leads to this extraordinary role reversal:
The lawyers, these people said, felt they had amassed more than enough probable cause to ask a judge to approve a search of Mar-a-Lago. Some agents at the field office weren’t certain. Eventually, the Justice Department lawyers prevailed.
Strzok himself noted how unusual this was: “It’s an exceedingly rare day when prosecutors want a search warrant and agents don’t.”
Wowzers
NPR and Floodlight are doing some great work together. Their latest: “She was an ABC News producer. She also was a corporate operative”
New Developments In SBF Case
A swirl of late-night developments in the massive fraud case against FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried:
SBF reportedly landed at Westchester County Airport shortly before 10:30 p.m. ET Wednesday after being extradited by the Bahamas.
Two top SBF lieutenants, including his sometime girlfriend, have pleaded guilty and are cooperating with prosecutors, the Wall Street Journal reports
Caroline Ellison, the 28-year-old former chief executive of Alameda Research, the trading firm intertwined with FTX, pleaded guilty to seven counts, including wire fraud and conspiracy to commit securities fraud. She signed her plea agreement Monday.
Gary Wang, the 29-year-old former chief technology officer for FTX pleaded guilty to four counts, including wire fraud.
The new guilty pleas were announced by Manhattan U.S. Attorney Damian Williams in a video posted late last night:
Statement of U.S. Attorney Damian Williams on U.S. v. Samuel Bankman-Fried, Caroline Ellison, and Gary Wang pic.twitter.com/u1y4cs3Koz
The former president tried an end run around New York Attorney General Letitia James’ massive civil fraud case against the Trump Org by suing her in Florida. It failed. A federal judge Wednesday rejected Trump’s request for an emergency injunction and warned in a footnote to his ruling: “This litigation has all the telltale signs of being both vexatious and frivolous.” The same judge recently sanctioned Trump lawyers in a different case for filing a frivolous lawsuit.
You Can Run But You Can’t Hide
Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Shaye Moss — the reluctantly famous poll workers in Fulton County, Georgia, who are suing Rudy Giuliani for defamation — have accused a lawyer who worked for the Trump campaign of dodging their subpoena for documents. A federal judge agreed to allow them to effect service by other means.
Hunter Biden Hires Abbe Lowell
Facing legal peril and as a prime target of the incoming House GOP majority, Hunter Biden has engaged longtime DC power lawyer Abbe Lowell.
Buffalo Goes After Gunmakers
The city of Buffalo filed a “first of its kind” lawsuit seeking to hold gunmakers liable for gun violence as a “public nuisance.”
RIP Franco Harris
LATROBE, PA – JULY 1982: Running back Franco Harris of the Pittsburgh Steelers smiles as he looks on from the field during summer training camp at St. Vincent College in July 1982 in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. (Photo by George Gojkovich/Getty Images)
The same week his jersey was to be retired, marking the 50th anniversary of his Immaculate Reception, Pittsburgh Steelers great Franco Harris has died at 72. With a Black father and an Italian mother, Harris was adored by Italian Americans in Pittsburgh. But this was the best remembrance of his legacy:
My grandmother, off-the-boat Irish, died three years ago. She loved football, and her favorite player was Franco Harris. Thing is, she loved him because, for the longest time, she thought his name was Frank O’Harris. True story. RIP to two of the greats.
Kari Lake’s attempt to get her Arizona gubernatorial loss overturned went to trial Wednesday, as her lawyers pushed the two of 10 claims still standing in her lawsuit.
