The Jan. 6 select committee voted unanimously Thursday to subpoena Donald Trump, a remarkable bid to tie up one of its last remaining threads that’s unlikely to successfully compel the former president’s testimony.
“It is our obligation to seek Donald Trump’s testimony,” the panel’s chair, Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), said before the vote. “There’s precedent in American history for Congress to compel the testimony of a
They featured testimony that Trump’s allies were pushing him to declare victory on Election Day 2020 even before the votes were counted, that he was in a unique position to know election fraud claims were false, and that he was warned of the unfolding violence at the Capitol before he tweeted an inflammatory attack on then-Vice President Mike Pence.
Among other revelations, the committee said Thursday that Trump sent military leaders into a panic by secretly ordering all U.S. troops withdrawn from Afghanistan and Somalia days after losing reelection.
The select panel showed testimony from Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, describing Trump’s withdrawal move as “potentially dangerous” but said Trump suggested leaving the problem to “the next guy.” While the order was never implemented, Trump’s intent was to complete the withdrawal before Inauguration Day — and panel member Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) argued that it was evidence that he knew “his term would shortly end.”
And despite his private admissions, Trump publicly continued to sow doubt about the election results, part of a plan the select committee said he began implementing days before the election….
The vote to subpoena Trump has been unanimously approved. After a consensus unanimous vote, Cheney asked for a roll call vote, and each Commitee member voted individually with “aye.” It was recorded by the clerk. The hearing was adjourned.
Wow.