The House's Jan. 6 select committee says has its evidence that then-President Trump and his campaign tried illegally to obstruct Congress’ counting of electoral votes and “engaged in a criminal conspiracy to defraud the United States,” Politico reports. In a description of its findings filed in federal court, the committee suggested that its evidence supported findings that Trump himself violated multiple laws by attempting to prevent Congress from certifying his defeat. Characterizing statements in nearly a dozen depositions from top aides to Trump and former Vice President Mike Pence, the committee described a president who had been informed repeatedly that he lost the election and that his claims of fraud were unfounded — only to reject them and continue to mislead the public. He pushed advisers to strategize ways to overturn the election results.
The committee suggests Trump and his allies may have committed three distinct crimes: Obstruction of an official proceeding — in this case, Congress’ Jan 6 session to count electoral votes — defrauding the U.S by interfering in the election certification and spreading false information about the results, and violating the District of Columbia’s common fraud law. In 16 exhibits, the panel showcased testimony from key figures in Trump-world, including campaign adviser Jason Miller, White House communications aide Ben Williamson, Pence national security adviser Keith Kellogg, Pence counsel Greg Jacob and Pence chief of staff Marc Short. Other documents include a page from Trump’s private Jan. 6 schedule, released by the National Archives, which includes an 11:20 a.m. call with Pence, as well as a call with then-Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA).