Tag: January 6

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GOP January 6

Liz Cheney: Jim Jordan Was One Of The ‘Masterminds’ Of Jan. 6 And Has ‘Something To Hide’

Though we’ve known for nearly three years that Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) was in phone contact with former president Donald Trump on January 6, 2021 as the U.S. Capitol was being attacked by Trump supporters, it remains unclear exactly what role Jordan may have played in organizing the protests that took place that fateful day.

Now, however, a former colleague of Jordan’s, Liz Cheney, is suggesting that she believes the Ohio Republican was one of the “masterminds” behind Jan. 6.

Appearing on “Deadline: White House” to discuss her new book, Cheney was asked about Jordan.

“I think that there’s no question he has — that Jim Jordan has something to hide, probably a lot to hide,” Cheney remarked. “If you go back and you look at the phone records as well as what he’s said himself about his discussions and his conversations with Donald Trump on the 6. There’s a very significant role he played in the lead-up to that. He was clearly one of the masterminds in terms of helping to facilitate Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the election.”

Cheney added that Jordan’s steadfast refusal to comply with a subpoena from the House Select Committee investigating the 2020 election and Jan. 6 is also highly suspicious.

“So, you have to imagine that he’s doing everything he can to help Donald Trump, to do Donald Trump’s bidding. And I think that he has so many questions of his own to answer that people just need to go back and look at the record. Look at how confused he’s been when people have pushed him on what did you say to Donald Trump. When did you talk to him on the 6th? What was your role in all of this? Did you make a request for pardons? But he’s very clearly at the heart of what was an attempt to seize power and overturn an election.”

Does that mean Jordan has “criminal exposure?” host Nicolle Wallace asked. Cheney replied, “He has a lot of questions to answer.”

In time, perhaps Special Counsel Jack Smith will take a long hard look at Jordan and others in Congress who may have played a role in Jan. 6 and the attempt to overturn the 2020 election. Until then, we can always hope that Smith succeeds in obtaining guilty verdicts against Donald Trump.

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Crime Donald Trump Elections January 6

Jack Smith Will Reveal ‘Important Evidence’ Today That Lays Out Trump’s Motives For January 6

Later today, Special Counsel Jack Smith is expected to file notice to attorneys for former president Donald Trump of  “any crimes, wrongs, or other bad acts” the Justice Department believes Trump committed in his attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 election, which he lost in an electoral landslide to President Joe Biden.

Former U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance notes on Substack that the filing — known formally as a 404(b) notice — is meant to show “evidence of a prior crime, for instance, can be offered to prove ‘motive, opportunity [to commit the crime], intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity, absence of mistake, or lack of accident.'”

Given what we already know about Smith’s case against Trump, Vance continues, it’s safe to believe that the special counsel is about to reveal “some important evidence” that significantly boosts has case against the ex-president.

Expect him to focus on proving Trump’s state of mind when it comes to election fraud and the absence of a good faith belief that the path he was setting the nation on would not result in the type of obstructive violence we saw on January 6—in other words, it was no mistake. Smith will also have to advise Trump about the permitted purpose he believes he can offer any 404(b) evidence for and the reasoning in support of his view. This, coincidentally, forces Smith (or perhaps gives him the opportunity depending on your point of view), to educate the public a fair bit more about his case.

Trump is also facing federal criminal prosecution for allegedly stealing classified documents from the White House and transporting them to his Mar-a-Lago resort. That case will be heard in a Florida courtroom while the Jan. 6 case it proceeding in Washington, D.C. with U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan presiding. Chutkan has signaled that she intends to start the trial before the 2024 election is held, which could prove politically disastrous for Trump.

Additionally, the former president is being prosecuted for racketeering in Georgia as a result of his attempts to subvert the will of voters in the Peach State. Several co-defendants have already agreed to cooperate with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.

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Congress GOP

Marjorie Taylor Greene’s BS Jan. 6 Claims Get Destroyed In Brutal Fact Check Of Her New Book

According to a new book from controversial Georgia Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene is getting her pilloried by reviewers for her fact-free claims that Democrats acted like cowards during the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol.

In the book, entitled MTG, Greene writes that House Democrats were “hysterical” during the attack. She adds:

“Several of the Republican congressmen said, ‘We’re going to stay right here and defend the House chamber.’ As they began barricading the door with furniture, I noticed not one Democrat was willing to stay to defend the chamber.”

But as Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO) told The Guardian, Greene’s recollection of the events is complete bullshit. Crow says the book is “patently false” and “doesn’t exist in the same reality as the rest of us.”

The Guardian also reports that Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ), concurred with Crow.

In an oral history of January 6 by Business Insider, Raúl Grijalva, of Arizona, said: “You also saw members doing their part to facilitate our evacuation – Seth Moulton [of Massachusetts, a marines veteran], Ruben Gallego, and four or five others … who assumed a role of helping us to get out of there and working with the Capitol police to make sure that we were all safe.”

Gallego, also of Arizona and a former marine, told the same site: “Eventually what I did was I jumped up on a table and started giving instructions to people about how to open up the gas mask. We start seeing the doors being barricaded with furniture. We start hearing the noise of people – the insurrectionists – pounding on doors. Especially in the gallery.”

Greene ridicules some House Democrats for being too old and out of shape to defend themselves or others as rioters began attacking the Capitol and calling for the death of then-Vice President Mike Pence.

“I saw that it was a problem that so many of our representatives were older and physically unable to run. How do you get them to safety when they cannot move quickly because of age, physical ailments, or lack of physical fitness?”

“Oh, and many were hysterical, with the plastic bags over their heads in fear of teargas and the little electric fans running so they couldn’t hear, either. Just imagine Jerry Nadler trying to run for safety!”

Hysterical? Sounds more like how Greene reacts whenever someone dares to criticize her lord and savior, Donald Trump.

 

Categories
Capitol Insurrection Donald Trump Elections January 6 The Trump Adminstration

A Torn-Up Note May Wind Up Being The Key To Proving Trump’s Guilt For January 6

A note that former president Donald Trump angrily ripped up in the days before the January 6, 2021 Capitol insurrection is likely to be the key piece of evidence that will prove Trump’s guilt in the plot to illegally overturn the 2020 election, according to former federal prosecutor Andrew Weissmann.

The torn-up note features prominently in a new book from ABC News journalist Jonathan Karl, Tired of Winning: Donald Trump and the End of the Grand Old Party, and it confirms previous testimony presented to the House Select Committee that investigated Jan. 6.

Karl’s book was discussed on “Deadline: White House” Monday, and the issue of the note, in which top Army leaders said the military could not get involved in election issues, led Weissmann to note, “That note gets ripped up into pieces so no one could find it.”

Weissmann also explained why the note is so important in proving Trump’s role in the Capitol insurrection.

“As much of you think of it as a military organization with a hierarchy, they are also trained they do not violate the Constitution. And when there’s an invalid order, they cannot follow it because the Constitution comes first.

“So, to me, this is right to the heart of Donald Trump brushing up against one guardrail.”

Additionally, Weissmann said other evidence also points to how Trump and his top aides were planning to subvert the will of the voters in 2020.

“I have always been fascinated by the fact you had had the Defense Department and [Gen. Mark] Milley, with a lot going on behind the scenes, pushing back because you can’t engage in a coup without military backing. And the fact that Kash Patel was there, a figure with no military expertise whatsoever, and was installed there, to me, is always this unwritten story about what was happening.”

Should a man who wanted to turn the United States into a dictatorship be allowed near the White House again? No. And that’s why his prosecution and eventual conviction for that crime is so important if this country and our representative democracy are to survive.

 

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Capitol Insurrection January 6 WTF?!

Jan. 6 Rioter Tells Judge He Only Showed Up At Capitol To Increase His Social Media Engagement

Ryan Zink is a resident of Arizona who showed up at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 and allegedly played a role in the events of that horrific day.

How do we know Zink was at the Capitol on Jan. 6? Because he was stupid enough to film himself charging towards the building and then post the videos on social media for others to see.

Including, of course, the FBI and other federal investigators.

During his testimony, Kyle Cheney of Politico reports, Zink attempted to defend his actions by claiming he was merely trying to boost is social media engagement.

However, such a defense is seriously undercut by statements Zink made that day, including:

  • “We’re storming the Capitol!”
  • “They can’t stop us!”

Here’s what else Cheney shared about Zink’s testimony.

Ryan Zink, a Jan. 6 defendant charged with obstruction, is on the stand in his ongoing trial. His dad ran against Ruben Gallego in the 2022 election and is running for the open seat in 2024.

The younger Zink testified that he was apolitical, disgusted by the violence he witnessed and tried to help cops that day. Videos of him charging toward the Capitol (and up the steps) while yelling “we’re storming the Capitol,” among other things, were just for clicks, he says.

In 5 videos Zink — who was with his father that day — yells “they can’t stop us” while surging with the crowd. “We’re in the doors,” he yells while the crowd breached (though he didn’t go in) His explanation today: “I’m embellishing my activity here to try to retain viewership”

NOTABLY Zink tried to subpoena Speaker McCarthy, Rep. Jim Jordan and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. Last week, House lawyers sharply (and successfully) rejected the effort, saying the subpoena was improper and sought irrelevant info.

Since he was merely trying to get more views on Facebook, maybe Zink can get Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg to pay his legal bills or send him some money for his prison commissary account if and when he’s found guilty and incarcerated.

He might not want to hold his breath waiting for that to happen.