Jan. 6 Panel Has Evidence for Criminal Referral of Trump, but Splits on Sending

Authored by nytimes.com and submitted by UGMadness
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“I would say that I don’t agree with what some of my colleagues have said about this,” Ms. Luria said on MSNBC this month. “I think it’s a lot more important to do what’s right than it is to worry about the political ramifications. This committee, our purpose is legislative and oversight, but if in the course of our investigation we find that criminal activity has occurred, I think it’s our responsibility to refer that to the Department of Justice.”

Ms. Cheney portrayed any divisions as minor and said the panel would work collaboratively and reach a consensus agreement.

“I’m confident we will work to come to agreement,” she said.

Although staff members have been in discussions about a referral, and some have debated the matter publicly, the committee members have not sat down together to discuss whether to proceed with a referral, several lawmakers said.

Representative Pete Aguilar, Democrat of California, said the committee was likely to hold off on making a final determination until investigators finished their work. He said the panel was “finishing up” its investigative phase and shifting to a more “public-facing” one in which the panel will present its findings.

“The members haven’t had those conversations,” Mr. Aguilar said of a meeting to discuss a potential referral. “Right now, we’re gathering the material that we need. As the investigative phase winds down, we’ll have more conversations about what the report looks like. But we’re not presupposing where that’s going to go before we get a little further with the interviews.”

Although the committee has the ability to subpoena testimony and documents and make referrals to the Justice Department for prosecutions, it has no criminal prosecution powers.

McG4rn4gle on April 10th, 2022 at 13:04 UTC »

The passing of the buck with this Trump business is unbelievable - he's been breaking the law so flagrantly the last 7 years that prosecutors seem embarrassed to address it because the cases are SO NAKEDLY PLAIN that no one wants to be the prosecutor to potentially swing and miss so no one is swinging.

meatball402 on April 10th, 2022 at 11:13 UTC »

If the tables were turned, they would have prosecuted all the democrats yesterday.

They treat the Republicans with a level of care the Republicans do not reciprocate.

CR0Wmurder on April 10th, 2022 at 10:53 UTC »

The members and aides who were reluctant to support a referral contended that making one would create the appearance that Mr. Garland was investigating Mr. Trump at the behest of a Democratic Congress and that if the committee could avoid that perception it should, the people said.

Even if the final report does not include a specific referral letter to Mr. Garland, the findings would still provide federal prosecutors with the evidence the committee uncovered — including some that has not yet become public — that could be used as a road map for any prosecution, the people said.

No one will ever think this isn’t political. The Democrats will bear this burden. Republicans wouldn’t have this committee, would that be political? They wouldn’t if Trump shot the proverbial “guy on 5th avenue”

besides this cat has left the bag and grown old and died It already is political. I mean, which voters are Dems trying to reach? Red Hatters? “Both-sides” centrists who’ve never voted Dem in their life? Or maybe don’t be so afraid of leading that you follow your fucking fears.

Come out and just say (with adult language and all) “You damn right we made a criminal referral, we think he broke the law and no man is above it.”

It’s not often I plug something positive for my state, but I hope Rep Bennie herds these cats in a parade to the finish line and forces AG Garland to stop working from home and come into the office and do his job.