US lawmakers suggests Jan. 6 protest was premeditated
A US lawmaker has suggested that the Jan. 6 protests by supporters of former US President US Donald Trump was premeditated.
Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson made the comments in an interview aired on CBS as the former president’s closest allies were getting closer to being brought to justice over the insurrection over the attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.
“Well, there's no question,” the House lawmaker said in response to the host’s question about whether the riot was premeditated. “Clearly the direction of the committee is to look at that premeditation to make sure that we identified, but the worst kept secret in America is that Donald Trump invited individuals to come to Washington on Jan. 6.”
The Minnesota Democrat further commented about the role played by Steve Bannon, the chief strategist in the previous administration, in the Trump’s supporters’ storming of the Capitol.
“Steve Bannon was part of the conversation and the promotion of Jan. 6, the very podcast we just listened to talks about it. Steve Bannon was in the war room, and he was in the Willard Hotel, doing a lot of things, so that's why we subpoenaed him, that's why we felt it was important for the committee and staff to depose him. But as you saw, he refused to participate,” Thompson noted.
Trump has filed a federal lawsuit against the Jan. 6 select committee in an attempt to block the panel from obtaining his administration's records from the US National Archives, something that has to be addressed first, Bannon argued, before he could comply with the committee’s subpoena.
After being referred to the US Department of Justice for criminal charges, Bannon could potentially face the jail time, a fine or both.
In their lawsuit, the former president’s attorneys argued that he had an interest in preserving executive privilege over some documents.
Since Jan. 6, Democrats have been arguing that the protest was an insurrection based on disinformation spread by the former president, who alleges that he is the true victor of the 2020 presidential election and not President Joe Biden.
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