March 29, 2024

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Investigations into the attack on the Capitol are tightening the fence on Donald Trump

Investigations into the attack on the Capitol are tightening the fence on Donald Trump

Photo: Agence France-Presse

A year after the violent attack on the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021, hundreds of judicial and political proceedings continue to search for the culprits. physical and intellectual of what happened, Increasingly tightening the screws on former President Donald Trump. The investigations are divided into two large groups: on the one hand, the police and judicial persecution of more than 700 people who committed acts of vandalism that day; On the other hand, the open political process in the House of Representatives against persons from the orbit of the former president.

Investigations showed that Trump and his allies made a concerted effort to prevent a congressional session chaired by Mike Pence from certifying Biden as the winner of the November 2020 presidential election on that day.The Capitol was not violated by the rebels, even during the Civil WarBiden said in July, “The castle of our democracy. It wasn’t opposition. It was chaos. It caused an existential crisis and a test of whether our democracy would survive.”

More than 700 accused

up to date, The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia has indicted more than 700 individuals, residing across the United States, for crimes ranging from physically assaulting police officers to obstructing the performance of their duties, destroying government property and entering a building with restricted access.

The highest ruling issued so far, which was issued on December 17, fell A man attacked police officers with a fire extinguisher And that He was sentenced to five years and three months in prison. Among the more than 700 detainees, Only about 150 agreed to plead guiltyAccording to the data of the Ministry of Justice.

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One of those who reached an agreement with the Attorney General’s office and pleaded guilty to obstructing official action during a congressional hearing was the most visible face of the assault on the Capitol, the man who disguised himself as a bison and declared himself a “Shaman Qanoun.” Jacob Chansley, Who is the In November, he was sentenced to 41 months in prison.

Thought Leaders to the Conference

While the FBI and Justice are dealing with the citizens who carried out the accidents, Parliament A parallel investigation is underway into what happened on January 6 and earlier days at the highest levels of the US government. The committee is made up of nine members, but only two of them are Republican and its future is in doubt if conservatives win control of the House of Representatives in the November legislative elections.

Unlike the courts where attackers are prosecuted, Congress does not have the power to punish anyone, so the investigation is just informational. But if any of the people who have been called to testify refuse to do so, the commission can charge them with contempt and then it’s up to the Justice Department to file charges. This was the case with Three colaboradores about TrumpYour ex-adviser and campaign manager Steve Bannon, former chief of staff Mark Meadows Former Deputy Prosecutor Jeffrey Clark, they are all found in contempt.

What could happen to Trump?

At the end of the debate after the Bannon, Meadows and Clark cases, the figure of the former president himself emerges: Will the commission ask the Justice Department to file criminal charges against Trump based on its findings? The possibility exists, and the American press asserts that it is something for the Democrats, but even among the ranks of the progressives themselves and the media in their orbit there are divided opinions.

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While some voices, such as committee chair Benny Thompson, want to move the investigation to its final consequences, others warn of the risk that a request of this kind could further politicize Americans’ perception of the committee and even help Trump present himself as a victim of persecution. political. What is more, The commission’s request by itself will not have any legal consequences, its health will only be useful for the government to decide whether to act or not.

On the occasion of the first anniversary of the Trump attack, who retains some control in the Republican Party, Announcing a press conference in Florida for that dayDuring which he is likely to repeat that the elections were stolen. Although there is no evidence to prove it, surveys show it About two-thirds of Republican voters believe him.

Almost all Republican members of Congress, well familiar with the political power of It seems that they support him Trump. To one of the most extreme people, Marjorie Taylor GreenHis Twitter account has been permanently suspended for spreading false information about the coronavirus pandemic. Twitter had previously and temporarily restricted Green’s personal account for sharing false information about the 2020 presidential election. Like its political leader, whose social media accounts have also been taken down, Green dismissed the action on Sunday, saying that “Big Tech and the Communist Democrats Can’t Stop the Truth”.

(taken from Page 12)