They got him now?
Jan. 6 panel alleges former President Trump 'may have' engaged in criminal acts https://t.co/5W8ybwq718
— WCPO 9 (@WCPO) March 3, 2022
From the article:
The Jan. 6 select committee now says that they have findings that show that former President Donald Trump and others allegedly “may have engaged in criminal and/or fraudulent acts” in an effort to overturn the results of the 2020 U.S. presidential election.
In a federal court filing released by the Central District of California court late on Wednesday, the committee said that in their investigation into the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, they also found that legal assistance for Trump was allegedly used “in furtherance of those activities.”
This filing is in response to “the lawsuit filed by Professor John Eastman in his attempt to keep records hidden behind claims of attorney-client privilege”:
The Select Committee is filing a brief in the lawsuit filed by Professor John Eastman in his attempt to keep records hidden behind claims of attorney-client privilege.
In the brief, the Committee lays out numerous arguments refuting Eastman’s claims.https://t.co/hAPA7y96H7
— January 6th Committee (@January6thCmte) March 3, 2022
You can read the filing here:
BREAKING: The Jan. 6 select committee says it believes Donald Trump violated multiple laws in his quest to overturn the 2020 election — including obstruction of Congress and defrauding the United States.https://t.co/xfJ5jYQDom
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) March 3, 2022
In summary, the committee is arguing Eastman “committed crimes and cannot assert attorney/client privilege”:
Recommended
The House has just slammed John Eastman for invoking privilege. It's an incredibly powerful brief, arguing that Eastman looks like he committed crimes and cannot assert attorney/client privilege. The full legal brief is herehttps://t.co/8l374rrvnB
— Neal Katyal (@neal_katyal) March 3, 2022
Or maybe they do not got him now. From RCP’s Tom Beavan who called this a “sham filing designed to generate headlines”
It's a sham filing designed to generate headlines. And of course it worked. pic.twitter.com/weCjYmvP8F
— Tom Bevan (@TomBevanRCP) March 3, 2022
Bevan added, if they “had the goods, they would refer it to the DOJ”:
If the Jan 6 Committee had the goods, they would refer it to the DOJ. Link: https://t.co/BDApazPDDN
— Tom Bevan (@TomBevanRCP) March 3, 2022
Nailed it:
True. It’s utter BS. https://t.co/H5s3GySlnJ
— Kurt Schlichter (@KurtSchlichter) March 3, 2022
Here’s one of the key paragraphs from the filing that has folks so animated:
A. Obstruction of an Official Proceeding
The evidence detailed above provides, at minimum, a good-faith basis for
concluding that President Trump has violated section 18 U.S.C. § 1512(c)(2). The
elements of the offense under 1512(c)(2) are: (1) the defendant obstructed, influenced or
impeded, or attempted to obstruct, influence or impede, (2) an official proceeding of the
United States, and (3) that the defendant did so corruptly. Id. (emphasis added). To date,
six judges from the United States District Court for the District of Columbia have
addressed the applicability of section 1512(c) to defendants criminally charged in
connection with the January 6th attack on the Capitol. Each has concluded that
Congress’s proceeding to count the electoral votes on January 6th was an “official
proceeding” for purposes of this section, and each has refused to dismiss charges against
defendants under that section.75
In a major release of findings filed in federal court tonight, the panel revealed broad swaths of its conclusions. Here's the analysis on obstruction:https://t.co/xfJ5jYQDom pic.twitter.com/SzA2r4eiwX
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) March 3, 2022
More from Politico’s Kyle Cheney here:
The supported its conclusions by releasing excerpts from multiple depositions, including:
-JASON MILLER
-MARC SHORT
-GREG JACOB
-JOHN EASTMAN
-KEITH KELLOGG
-JEFF ROSEN
-RICHARD DONOGHUE— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) March 3, 2022
MORE: The Committee revealed the details of an exchange that came after the riot had subsided in which EASTMAN makes one last-ditch bid to convince Pence to violate the Electoral Count Act — an indication that Eastman knew it was against the law. https://t.co/94NuXZF2JU
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) March 3, 2022
All of this is part of an effort to convince a federal judge to reject EASTMAN's effort to shield his records by claiming attorney-client privilege.
By arguing multiple crimes were committed, a judge is likelier to reject those claims.https://t.co/94NuXZF2JU
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) March 3, 2022
READ Pence counsel Greg JACOB's full response to John Eastman amid the attack on the Capitol, after things had gotten heated between the two of them. https://t.co/94NuXZF2JU pic.twitter.com/l26FP49nS3
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) March 3, 2022
MORE: The new documents include Trump's private schedule for Jan. 6, a document released to the committee by the National Archives. Check out the handwritten notes and the call with Pence.https://t.co/94NuXZFAzs pic.twitter.com/JolIpXkAlE
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) March 3, 2022
Trump's Jan. 6 schedule includes a call with then Georgia Sen. LOEFFLER at 11:17 a.m. After the insurrection, Loeffler backed off an initial plan to reject the challenge some of the states' results.https://t.co/94NuXZF2JU pic.twitter.com/eAS6kq3p78
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) March 3, 2022
It's 2:55 a.m. and I just figured out how Pence massaged the rules of the Electoral College counting session to avoid introducing the "rival" slates of Trump electors.
These are the instructions VPs have given out at the start in each of the last 5. Note the difference? pic.twitter.com/l7dnNhon5b
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) January 7, 2021
UPDATE: The Jan. 6 committee says Trump may have committed 3 crimes:
-Felony obstruction of an official proceeding
-Defrauding U.S. by interfering w/ electoral process
-D.C. code's common law fraudhttps://t.co/94NuXZF2JU— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) March 3, 2022
Their analysis: Trump was repeatedly told by aides he lost the election and that his effort to overturn it was DOA. He and John Eastman tried to "manipulate" Pence to do it anyway, knowing it would be illegal.https://t.co/94NuXZF2JU
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) March 3, 2022
In support of this plan, they encouraged state-level Republicans to submit "alternate" electors and pressured state lawmakers to "decertify" results — neither of which had any legitimate basis. https://t.co/94NuXZF2JU
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) March 3, 2022
And here is the response from John Eastman’s attorney:
JUST IN: Eastman’s attorney, Charles Burnham, responds to the Jan. 6 committee’s filing. https://t.co/94NuXZF2JU pic.twitter.com/b5hhfR8xTk
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) March 3, 2022
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