witness reports
Trump apparently wanted to overturn the election with the Justice Department
Former acting US Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen (l) listens to the testimony of his then deputy, Richard Donoghue. Photo: Jacquelyn Martin/AP/dpa
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Did ex-president Donald Trump bring the United States to the brink of a constitutional crisis? In the investigative committee for the now notorious January 6th, further spicy details are made public.
Ex-President Donald Trump wanted to abuse the US Department of Justice, according to the department’s leadership at the time, to avert his defeat in the 2020 presidential election.
At a hearing by the investigative committee into the storming of the US Capitol, then-acting Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen and his deputy Richard Donoghue described how Trump had put them under vehement pressure. At Thursday’s session, witnesses also indicated that several Republican lawmakers had asked for Trump’s pardon in advance.
Documents and recorded testimony from former White House staffers at the committee meeting showed that after January 6, Representatives Matt Gaetz, Mo Brooks, Scott Perry and Louie Gohmert, among others, sought such a pardon for themselves, to be protected from prosecution. The name of US Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, known for spreading right-wing conspiracy theories, was also mentioned in the hearing in this context – the witness stated that she had heard of Greene’s request. Some deputies like Perry and Gohmert rejected the allegation. Greene accused the committee of relying on hearsay.
Witnesses Donoghue and Rosen, who worked under Trump at the Justice Department, said the then-president threatened to reappoint the head of the House in order to get the agency to crack down on alleged voter fraud. Rosen said during his brief tenure at the helm of the ministry, Trump called or video chatted with him virtually every day from December 23, 2020 to January 3, 2021. Donoghue said Trump had “an arsenal of allegations” about alleged voter fraud “that he wanted to base himself on.” The President has urged the Justice Department to investigate. However, these were baseless allegations or conspiracy theories. “These allegations were simply baseless,” Donoghue said.
The top management threatened collectively with resignation
The Department of Justice has complied with the law and the facts, stressed Rosen. Among other things, Trump tried to get the department to write a letter declaring that the election was corrupt, Donoghue said. Trump said that he and his Republican allies in Congress would then do the “rest” – i.e. overturning the legitimate election result. Donoghue stressed that the letter had politically instrumentalized the ministry in a dangerous way. “It would probably have slipped us into a constitutional crisis,” he said.
Trump threatened to replace Rosen with top official Jeffrey Clark, who was willing to use the agency to undermine the election, in the face of the department’s refusal to back him. At a dramatic meeting in the White House on January 3, Trump was made clear that in this case almost the entire top management of the ministry would resign immediately, Rosen and Donoghue said in unison. Rosen stressed that White House Counsel Pat Cipollone had advised Trump not to fire the ministry head.
As one member of the investigative committee, Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger, summed it up: “President Trump has attempted to undo his election defeat by appointing an unqualified man to head the Justice Department. It was a win-at-any-cost move, regardless of the will of the people of America.” For Trump, facts were “irrelevant”. “What good are facts if they only confirm his defeat?” asked Kinzinger, who is one of the few prominent Trump critics among Republicans in Congress. “In short, he was willing to sacrifice our republic to extend his presidency.”
Trump camp failed with dozens of lawsuits
Rosen and Donoghue only took office in December 2020 for the final weeks of Trump’s term after Attorney General William Barr tendered his resignation amid a dispute over the outcome of the presidential election. Barr has since described Trump’s fraudulent fantasies as “bullshit” and “crazy.” To this day, Trump claims without evidence that he was deprived of victory in the November 2020 election through fraud. His camp failed with dozens of lawsuits. For weeks, the Republican tried to overturn the success of Democrat Joe Biden using the most questionable methods. Resistance culminated in an attack on the Capitol, the seat of Parliament.
Documents and recorded testimony from former White House staffers at the committee meeting confirmed that after Jan. 6, several Republican lawmakers sought an early pardon from Trump. Representatives Matt Gaetz, Mo Brooks, Scott Perry and Louie Gohmert, among others, have sought protection from possible prosecution given their support for Trump’s efforts.
On January 6, 2021, Trump supporters violently stormed the seat of parliament in the capital Washington. Congress met there to certify Biden’s election victory. Five people were killed in the riots, including a police officer. The attack on the heart of US democracy shook the country.