The prime-time Jan. 6th Committee session kicked off in dramatic fashion Thursday night as the House Committee led by a strong Liz Cheney, a Republican, showed violent, never-before-seen video of a mob surging into the building, attacking Capitol police and security footage of people inside the Capitol running for their lives.
“President Trump summoned the mob, assembled the mob and lit the flame of this attack,” Cheney said.
The nine-member panel put the blame for the violence on Trump, who knew he had lost the 2020 presidential election but falsely claimed that his defeat was due to fraud — the so-called ‘Big Steal’ — and then worked to ‘subvert democracy.’
“The violence was no accident,” Committee Chairman Bennie G. Thompson (D-Miss.) said as he opened the hearing. “It represented Trump’s last, most desperate chance to halt the transfer of power. 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.”
Convincingly the committee argued that Trump repeatedly failed to stop the violence and instead cheered on the mob.
“Aware of the rioters’ chants to ‘hang Mike Pence,’ the president responded with this sentiment: ‘Maybe our supporters have the right idea,’ ” Cheney said. “Mike Pence ‘deserves’ it.’ ”
And in a warning to her Republican colleagues, Cheney said:
“I say this to my Republican colleagues who are defending the indefensible — there will come a day when Donald Trump is gone, but your dishonor will remain.”
As Republicans continue to try and deflect the criticisms, it’s worth remembering that 140 police officers were assaulted that day and five people died in the Jan. 6 attack or in the immediate aftermath.
The hearings continue next Monday.