Jan. 6 committee says there is evidence Trump 'engaged in a criminal conspiracy' to overturn 2020 election
In a court filing on Wednesday, lawyers for the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot wrote there is evidence suggesting former President Donald Trump "may have engaged in criminal acts" by attempting to keep Congress from certifying the 2020 presidential election.
The lawyers also wrote that the committee has a "good-faith basis for concluding that the president and members of his campaign engaged in a criminal conspiracy to defraud the United States."
The filing was made in response to John Eastman, one of Trump's former lawyers, fighting to keep documents and emails from the committee, saying they are protected under attorney-client privilege. In the days leading up to the Capitol riot, Eastman allegedly tried to convince former Vice President Mike Pence that he had the authority to overturn the election results.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In a statement, the committee's chair, Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), and vice chair, Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), said the "facts we've gathered strongly suggest that Dr. Eastman's emails may show that he helped Donald Trump advance a corrupt scheme to obstruct the counting of electoral college ballots and a conspiracy to impede the transfer of power."
The committee has interviewed several Trump and Pence aides, and there are excerpts from some of their depositions in the filing. Read more at The Washington Post.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Political cartoons for February 1Cartoons Sunday's political cartoons include Tom Homan's offer, the Fox News filter, and more
-
Will SpaceX, OpenAI and Anthropic make 2026 the year of mega tech listings?In Depth SpaceX float may come as soon as this year, and would be the largest IPO in history
-
Reforming the House of LordsThe Explainer Keir Starmer’s government regards reform of the House of Lords as ‘long overdue and essential’
-
The ‘mad king’: has Trump finally lost it?Talking Point Rambling speeches, wind turbine obsession, and an ‘unhinged’ letter to Norway’s prime minister have caused concern whether the rest of his term is ‘sustainable’
-
A running list of everything Donald Trump’s administration, including the president, has said about his healthIn Depth Some in the White House have claimed Trump has near-superhuman abilities
-
Trump sues IRS for $10B over tax record leaksSpeed Read The president is claiming ‘reputational and financial harm’ from leaks of his tax information between 2018 and 2020
-
Trump, Senate Democrats reach DHS funding dealSpeed Read The deal will fund most of the government through September and the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks
-
‘Implementing strengthened provisions help advance aviation safety’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Fed holds rates steady, bucking Trump pressureSpeed Read The Federal Reserve voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged
-
Judge slams ICE violations amid growing backlashSpeed Read ‘ICE is not a law unto itself,’ said a federal judge after the agency violated at least 96 court orders
-
Does standing up to Trump help world leaders at home?Today’s Big Question Mark Carney’s approval ratings have ‘soared to new highs’ following his Davos speech but other world leaders may not benefit in the same way
