Former federal Judge J. Michael Luttig delivered strong testimony during the third public Jan. 6 hearing on Thursday, telling investigators that if former President Donald Trump had succeeded in pressuring then-Vice President Mike Pence to overturn the results of the 2020 election, it would have been "the first constitutional crisis since the founding of the republic."
"The declaration of Donald Trump as the next president would have plunged America into what I believe, would have been tantamount to a revolution within a constitutional crisis in America," Luttig testified.
The former judge, a conservative legal icon who advised Pence about his Jan. 6 duties, also said he would have "laid my body across the road" before allowing the vice president to overturn the results of the 2020 contest on the basis of a faulty legal theory from attorney John Eastman. Eastman had claimed the 12th Amendment could be interpreted so as to allow the vice president to reject state electors or declare the winner of an election, The Hill summarizes.
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.
Trump himself continues to be "a clear and present danger to American democracy," Luttig argued.
And as for the GOP, well, Luttig didn't mince words in that department, either. "The former president's party cynically and embarrassingly rationalizes Jan. 6 as having been something between hallowed, legitimate public discourse and a visitors tour of the Capitol that got out of hand," he said. "Jan. 6, of course, was neither, and the former president and his party know that."
Luttig was one of two witnesses to speak during the third public hearing, the other being Greg Jacob, former counsel to the vice president.
-
Choline: the ‘under-appreciated’ nutrientThe Explainer Studies link choline levels to accelerated ageing, anxiety, memory function and more
-
Is a Putin-Modi love-in a worry for the rest of the world?Today’s Big Question The Indian leader is walking a ‘tightrope’ between Russia and the United States
-
Quiz of The Week: 29 November – 5 DecemberQuiz Have you been paying attention to The Week’s news?
-
Trump boosts gas cars in fuel economy rollbackspeed read Watering down fuel efficiency standards is another blow to former President Biden’s effort to boost electric vehicles
-
Hegseth’s Signal chat put troops in peril, probe findsSpeed Read The defense secretary risked the lives of military personnel and violated Pentagon rules, says new report
-
Trump pardons Texas Democratic congressmanspeed read Rep. Henry Cuellar was charged with accepting foreign bribes tied to Azerbaijan and Mexico
-
GOP wins tight House race in red Tennessee districtSpeed Read Republicans maintained their advantage in the House
-
Trump targets ‘garbage’ Somalis ahead of ICE raidsSpeed Read The Department of Homeland Security will launch an immigration operation targeting Somali immigrants in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area
-
Hegseth blames ‘fog of war’ for potential war crimespeed read ‘I did not personally see survivors,’ Hegseth said at a Cabinet meeting
-
Canada joins EU’s $170B SAFE defense fundspeed read This makes it the first non-European Union country in the Security Action for Europe (SAFE) initiative
-
Appeals court disqualifies US Attorney Alina HabbaSpeed Read The former personal attorney to President Donald Trump has been unlawfully serving as US attorney for New Jersey, the ruling says
