2021 saw a violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol as the supporters of former President Donald Trump tried to stop the count of electoral votes. The ramifications of that day are still playing out in Congress and the courts. Source by: Stringr
Audiences watching the first public hearing of the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot saw one injured officer who slipped in blood and spoke of "carnage."
They saw video of a huge, violent mob pushing through the U.S. Capitol. And they saw former President Donald Trump's allies and family members acknowledging his lies.
Panel members worked to lay out a devastating case as they tried to tell the story of how it happened, and how to prevent it from ever happening again, for history.
Rep. Bennie Thompson, the chairman of the panel, says, "We can't sweep what happened under the rug."
Takeaways from the first night of hearings
Jan 6 insurrection
UpdatedSetting a stage
UpdatedWhile the basics of attack on the Capitol are well known, the committee is trying to tell the story of how it happened, and how to prevent it from ever happening again, for history. The made-for-TV hearings — including video of police officers being brutally beaten and right-wing extremists leading the crowds into the Capitol — come as some have tried to downplay the violence.
"We can't sweep what happened under the rug," said Rep. Bennie Thompson, the chairman of the panel, as he opened the hearing. "The American people deserve answers."
The committee has conducted more than 1,000 interviews with people connected to the siege and collected more than 140,000 documents. They will use that evidence over the course of seven hearings this month to show how the attack was coordinated by some of the rioters in the violent mob that broke into the Capitol and interrupted the certification of President Joe Biden's victory — and how Trump's efforts started it all.
Laying it all on Trump
UpdatedThompson laid out the committee's initial findings that Trump led a "sprawling, multi-step conspiracy aimed at overturning the presidential election" and the insurrection was a culmination of that "attempted coup." The panel's vice chairwoman, Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, called it a "sophisticated seven-part plan."
"The attack on our Capitol was not a spontaneous riot," said Cheney, one of two Republicans on the nine-member panel.
The hearing featured never-before-seen video testimony from Trump's family and close aides, many of whom were interviewed by the committee remotely.
The panel started by showing a video interview with former Attorney General Bill Barr, who said he told Trump at the time that his fraud claims had no merit. Barr, who said publicly a month before the insurrection that the Justice Department had not found fraud, told the committee members that he had told Trump it was all "bull——."
The panel also showed video testimony from Trump's daughter, Ivanka Trump, who spoke to the committee in April. Ivanka Trump told the panel that Barr's declaration "affected my perspective."
"I respect Attorney General Barr so I accepted what he said," she told the committee.
Another Trump adviser, Jason Miller, told the panel that campaign advisors had told the president in "clear terms" that he had lost the election.
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This isn't easy to watch
UpdatedThe committee showed new, graphic video from the insurrection, moving through a timeline of the violence. It started with rioters angrily walking toward the Capitol, then showed them breaking through thin police barriers and brutally beating police.
Using security footage, police body cameras, video from those who broke in and audio from the police scanner, the video showed rioters using flagpoles, tactical equipment and other weapons to hit officers as they overwhelmed them and broke inside. Some of the body camera footage was from the ground looking up, as officers watched their attackers beat them.
At the same time, it showed what was happening inside — the beginning of the joint session to certify Biden's election win and, people fleeing from the violence.
And it showed the rioters chanting "Hang Mike Pence," referring to the vice president who had defied Trump's orders to try to thwart Biden's certification, and chanting "Nancy! Nancy!" as they walked up a staircase inside the Capitol, referring to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
An officer overwhelmed and injured
UpdatedCaroline Edwards, a Capitol Police officer, testified in graphic terms about the bloody scene outside the Capitol that day and the traumatic brain injury she suffered when members of the Proud Boys and others pushed her to the ground as they led the mob into the Capitol.
Edwards was alone and holding two bike racks together at the front lines as the mob heaved toward her, pushing her and the racks to the ground. She hit her head on a concrete stairway, briefly falling unconscious.
Even with her injury, Edwards continued to fight off the crowd. She described a "war scene" out of the movies and hours of hand-to-hand combat that no law enforcement officer is trained to handle.
"They were throwing up — I saw friends with blood all over their faces," said Edwards, who has still not returned to duty in the first responders unit where she worked then. "I was slipping in people's blood. I was catching people as they fell. It was carnage. It was chaos."
Eneter the Proud Boys
UpdatedThe panel's other witness was British filmmaker Nick Quested, who was with members of the Proud Boys as they walked from Trump's rally in front of the White House to the Capitol. Quested was also filming members of the group the day ahead of the attack as they planned and met with members of the Oath Keepers in an underground garage.
The committee used some of Quested's footage of the war zone in front of the Capitol.
"For anyone who didn't understand how violent that event was, I saw it," he said. "I documented it and I experienced it."
Thompson said Trump's call for people to come on Jan. 6 "energized" members of the Proud Boys and other extremist groups. They highlighted Trump's comment at a presidential debate that the Proud Boys should "stand back and stand by."
The panel showed video testimony with a witness named Jeremy Bertino, a member of the Proud Boys, who said the group's membership "tripled, probably" after Trump's comment.
Made for television
UpdatedThe committee took the unusual step of launching the hearings with a prime time show — aimed to gather as many viewers as possible.
It's still unclear how many will tune in, but the panel is producing the hearing in hopes of becoming must-see television, featuring never before seen video footage of the violent insurrection.
The hearing room was also set up for impact, with a huge screen hanging over the lawmakers.
Lawmakers remain divided
UpdatedLawmakers who were trapped together in the House during the insurrection are attending Thursday's hearing after having dinner together. The members, all Democrats, were caught in an upper gallery of the chamber as rioters beat on the doors.
Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn., said the House members, who were eventually evacuated without harm, are dismayed that an event that exposed the fragility of democracy could "somehow be whitewashed by tens of millions of people."
Some GOP lawmakers have tried to downplay the insurrection, charging that Democrats are overly focused on the attempt to thwart the peaceful transfer of power.
"We want to remind people, we were there, we saw what happened. We know how close we came to the first non-peaceful transition of power in this country," Phillips said.
The U.S. congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, riots started its televised hearings on Thursday by showing its video interview with former attorney general Bill Barr, who testified he told Donald Trump that his election fraud claims were 'bullsh-t.' The panel also showed testimony from Ivanka Trump.
Images of chaos: AP photographers capture US Capitol riot
Capitol Riot Images of the Day
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Rioters scale a wall at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
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Supporters loyal to then-President Donald Trump attend a rally on the Ellipse near the White House on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
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Trump supporters participate in a rally in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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Trump supporters participate in a rally Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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Then-President Donald Trump gestures as he arrives to speak at a rally in Washington, on Jan. 6, 2021. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
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People listen as then-President Donald Trump speaks during a rally Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
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Supporters of then-President Donald Trump try to break through a police barrier at the Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
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A supporter of then-President Donald Trump is injured during clashes with police at the U.S. Capitol, Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
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A rioter pours water on herself at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
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A Trump supporter holds a Bible as he gathers with others outside the Capitol, Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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Trump supporters try to break through a police barrier, Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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A demonstrator supporting then-President Donald Trump, is sprayed by police, Jan. 6, 2021, during a day of rioting at the Capitol.(AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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Rioters try to enter the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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U.S. Capitol Police try to hold back rioters outside the east doors to the House side of the U.S. Capitol, Jan 6, 2021. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
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Rioters gather outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington, on Jan 6, 2021. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
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Protesters gather outside the U.S. Capitol, Jan 6, 2021. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
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Jacob Anthony Chansley, center, with other insurrectionists who supported then-President Donald Trump, are confronted by U.S. Capitol Police in the hallway outside of the Senate chamber in the Capitol, Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. Chansley, was among the first group of insurrectionists who entered the hallway outside the Senate chamber. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
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U.S. Capitol Police hold rioters at gun-point near the House Chamber inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
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Lawmakers evacuate the floor as rioters try to break into the House Chamber at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
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Police with guns drawn watch as rioters try to break into the House Chamber at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
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Congressmen shelter in the House gallery as rioters try to break into the House Chamber at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
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Members of Congress wear emergency gas masks as they are evacuated from the House gallery as rioters try to break into the House Chamber at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
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The House gallery is empty after it was evacuated as rioters try to break into the House Chamber at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
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Rep. Andy Kim, D-N.J., cleans up debris and personal belongings strewn across the floor of the Rotunda in the early morning hours of Jan. 7, 2021, after rioters stormed the Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
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Members of the DC National Guard surround the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
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Vice President Mike Pence and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., read the final certification of Electoral College votes cast in November's presidential election during a joint session of Congress after working through the night, at the Capitol in Washington, Jan. 7, 2021. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, Pool)
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A flag hangs between broken windows after then-President Donald Trump supporters tried to break through police barriers outside the U.S. Capitol, Jan 6, 2021. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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A flag that reads "Treason" is visible on the ground in the early morning hours of Jan. 7, 2021, after rioters stormed the Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
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An ATF police officer cleans up debris and personal belongings strewn across the floor of the Rotunda in the early morning hours of Jan. 7, 2021, after rioters stormed the Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
Capitol Breach
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Fencing is placed around the exterior of the Capitol grounds, Thursday, Jan. 7, 2021 in Washington. The House and Senate certified the Democrat's electoral college win early Thursday after a violent throng of pro-Trump rioters spent hours Wednesday running rampant through the Capitol. A woman was fatally shot, windows were bashed and the mob forced shaken lawmakers and aides to flee the building, shielded by Capitol Police. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Meet the 9 members of the Jan. 6 committee
Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Mississippi
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As the committee's chairman, Thompson sees his career-long struggle for civil rights as the foundation of his work in leading the investigation. Domestic extremism and its links to white supremacy are a familiar subject for Thompson, not only from his time on the Homeland Security Committee but also from his early involvement in the civil rights movement in Mississippi.
The 74-year-old lawmaker was sitting in the upper House gallery on Jan. 6, watching rioters' attempts to break through the doors. For him, the experience recalled the "unpleasant experiences" from his early days as a Black politician in the South.
Republicans and Democrats alike last summer pushed Thompson as the right choice to lead the investigation, seeing his understated style as the right fit for an investigation that was certain to be partisan and fraught.
In the months that have followed, even as some of his more outspoken counterparts have appeared on television to repeatedly criticize Trump, Thompson has mostly steered clear of the spectacle. Instead, he has made his voice heard in poignant opening remarks at hearings and in language in subpoenas, emphasizing the responsibility of the legislative branch to probe the "violent attack on the seat of our democracy."
Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyoming
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Cheney, the daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, is vice chair of the panel and has emerged as its most outspoken member. She broke with most other Republicans after the insurrection, voting for Trump's impeachment and declaring that he "lit the flame" that ignited the attack.
The stance led to Cheney's ouster from GOP leadership and censure from the national party. And while the party that made her family's legacy pushed her away, House Democrats have embraced her as a beacon of courage. Speaker Nancy Pelosi recruited her and fellow censured Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger to be the sole GOP members of the panel.
In the span of the inquiry, Cheney has become an even more fervent critic of the Republican former president. Trump, in turn, is trying to drive her out of politics by denying her another term in office.
Cheney now faces a Trump-backed challenge in Wyoming, which will hold its primary in August. She has set personal fundraising records ahead of the race, in part thanks to her role on the committee, but political strategists have said she'll likely need some votes from Democrats and independents to win. Much of the party is now against her reelection, including House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy, who drove her out of leadership.
There's also been chatter in Washington about Cheney parlaying her political standing to mount a 2024 presidential run against Trump.
Rep. Stephanie Murphy, D-Florida
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Murphy is one of two lame-duck members seated on the select committee. The 43-year-old joined Kinzinger in announcing this year she would not seek another term. Both lawmakers cited a desire to spend more time with their families after facing an onslaught of threats since the committee was formed.
"Public service is not without personal sacrifice," Murphy said in a statement announcing her decision. "And as a mom of two young children, my time away from them has been hard."
"This was not an easy decision, but it was the right decision," she added.
The Florida Democrat, who unseated a 12-term Republican incumbent in 2016 and helped her party flip back the House in 2018, has also been an outspoken critic of the growing partisan nature of Capitol Hill and the rift between moderates like herself and the more left-leaning members of her party.
Murphy, who in her nearly four years in Congress was often seen as a bipartisan dealmaker, has also taken a less Trump-focused approach in her role as a member of the committee, instead zeroing in on the impact the former president's efforts could have on future election integrity and voter enfranchisement. Murphy said she "is not done with public service" and will continue her work as chair of the Florida Democratic Party's Democracy and Voter Protection Program.
Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-California
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Aguilar is the only member of the committee currently serving in House leadership. The 42-year-old lawmaker representing California's Inland Empire is also likely to move up from the No. 6 spot in the Democratic caucus when leadership vacancies arise in the next year. Before coming to Congress in 2014, he was the mayor of Redlands, California.
When the district became more favorable to Democrats after a round of redistricting, Aguilar ran again and again until he flipped the Republican-held seat. He is currently the highest-ranking Latino in Congress.
On the select committee, Aguilar has been able to leverage his spot in leadership as the vice chair of the Democratic caucus to communicate the panel's goals and objectives as lawmakers face an onslaught of criticism from Republicans that the investigation is partisan and an abuse of Congress' investigatory powers.
Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Illinois
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Kinzinger is one of two Republicans serving on the Jan. 6 panel. His willingness to criticize Trump, GOP leadership and lawmakers on the far right has left him with few allies in his party. He opted last fall to not seek reelection rather than run in a primary later this month that would have had him facing off against GOP Rep. Darin LaHood in a newly redrawn congressional district that tilts strongly to the right.
Kinzinger was one of 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Trump on a charge of inciting the insurrection at the Capitol. Trump celebrated Kinzinger's decision to retire after serving out his sixth term, crowing "2 down, 8 to go!" But Kinzinger isn't going away quietly. He appears to relish taking digs at the former president and at McCarthy, who has worked strenuously to stay in the former president's good graces.
Kinzinger, 44, is a combat veteran who flew missions in Afghanistan and Iraq. He continues to serve as a pilot in the Air National Guard with the rank of lieutenant colonel. He has hinted at other political plans, saying upon his retirement that "this isn't the end of my political future but the beginning."
Rep. Adam Schiff, D-California
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Schiff is serving his 11th term in Congress and has parlayed that experience into a role as chairman of the House's intelligence committee. But he is perhaps best known as the lead impeachment manager in Trump's first Senate trial, where he warned senators weighing the charges that they knew they couldn't trust the president to do what's right for the country.
"You can trust he will do what's right for Donald Trump. He'll do it now. He's done it before. He'll do it for the next several months. He'll do it in the election if he's allowed to," Schiff warned.
Schiff often drew the ire of Trump, who mocked him at his campaign rallies and at White House events. McCarthy has suggested that Schiff will lose his intelligence panel seat if Republicans win the majority in November, a retaliatory move that would follow the Democrats stripping Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Paul Gosar of their committee assignments for their inflammatory rhetoric.
Schiff's experience as a federal prosecutor shows in his ability to frame issues and go toe-to-toe with the Republicans rhetorically. He is a confidant of Pelosi and is sometimes mentioned as her possible replacement should she step down. He could also someday run for a statewide office such as governor or senator.
Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Virginia
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Luria is serving her second term in office and faces stiff competition for a third in a district that leans Republican. She announced her reelection bid on the first anniversary of the insurrection, 1:46 p.m. to be exact, timed to match when she was being evacuated from her office. She said that the nation was at a crossroads and that Americans "must defend our democracy against forces that seek its destruction."
Luria is a 20-year Navy veteran whose district is home to a huge number of military personnel and veterans. She has not shied from her work on the Jan. 6 panel but also doesn't brandish it. Her press releases, tweets and floor statements emphasize efforts to boost defense spending and her support for a $1 trillion infrastructure bill. She also highlights efforts to work across party lines and touted coming in at No. 26 on one scorekeeper's rankings of bipartisanship in the House.
The top Republican challengers hoping to win the right to face her in November are also emphasizing issues other than her work on the Jan. 6 investigations, so it doesn't appear to be a front-burner issue in the race — for now.
Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Maryland
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Raskin has emerged as one of the panel's leading voices after serving as the lead House manager in Trump's second Senate impeachment trial. He has promised startling revelations in the upcoming hearings. "People need to understand how close we came to losing everything on Jan. 6 with both an inside effort at a political coup and an outside effort to violently overthrow the peaceful transfer of power," he said.
Raskin served as a constitutional law professor at American University's Washington College of Law for more than 25 years. He is a prolific writer who published a memoir about the insurrection, the subsequent impeachment trial and dealing with his son's death. The siege of the Capitol came just days after Raskin's 25-year-old son, Tommy, took his own life.
The Maryland Democrat is just in his third term in office and has already assured himself a leading role on legal issues before the House Judiciary Committee in the years ahead.
Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-California
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Lofgren is chairwoman of the Committee on House Administration, which has oversight of the U.S. Capitol Police. She has been a member of the House since 1995 and is an immigration attorney and immigration law professor who participated in the impeachment process for three presidents — Trump, Bill Clinton and Richard Nixon, the latter as a congressional staffer.
She said making the Capitol safer is not a substitute for determining what led to the attack on Jan. 6, 2021. She said: "Who paid for it? How was it organized? We need to find that out to keep the country safe."
