The House Select Committee investigating the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol is expected to refer former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and ex-president Donald Trump’s personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, to the Justice Department for criminal charges, according to CNN.
The panel is weighing criminal referrals for former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, right wing lawyer John Eastman, former Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark and Trump’s former lawyer Rudy Giuliani, the sources said.
The committee has not officially decided whom to refer to the Justice Department for prosecution and for what offenses, sources said. The four individuals who are among those under consideration, and whose names have not been previously reported, provide a window into the panel’s deliberations.
On Thursday, committee chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) confirmed that the panel will make a final decision on who to refer to the DOJ on Sunday.
“I think the more we looked at the body of evidence that we had collected, we just felt that while we’re not in the business of investigating people for criminal activities, we just couldn’t overlook some of them.”
Committee member Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) echoed Thompson’s comments, noting:
“I think anyone who engages in criminal actions needs to be held accountable for them. And we are going to spell that out.
“The gravest offense in constitutional terms is the attempt to overthrow a presidential election and bypass the constitutional order. Subsidiary to all of that are a whole host of statutory offenses, which support the gravity and magnitude of that violent assault on America.”
Additionally, the House Select Committee is also debating whether or not to refer former president Trump for criminal charges, with Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) telling NPR:
“I think the facts support a potential charge against the former president.”
