–For US Capitol Riots; Could Face Criminal Charges & Imprisonment If He Fails to Comply
BBC News, Washington: The congressional panel investigating last year’s Capitol riot has issued a legal summons ordering former President Donald Trump to testify to lawmakers.
Addressing him, the document reads: “You were at the center of the first and only effort by any US President to overturn an election.” It goes on: “You knew this activity was illegal and unconstitutional.”
A lawyer for Mr Trump accused the lawmakers on the committee of “flouting norms”.
The former president has lambasted the inquiry as a ruse designed to distract voters from the “disaster” of Democratic governance with US midterm elections looming next month.
Mr Trump could face criminal charges if he does not comply with the subpoena. He has until 4 November to provide documents to the 6 January committee, and must appear for deposition testimony on or about 14 November.
If Mr Trump refuses to testify to Congress or hand over the requested material, the committee could refer the matter to the Department of Justice – potentially triggering criminal proceedings.
The subpoena was issued just hours after former Trump strategist Steve Bannon was fined $6,500 (£5,800) and sentenced to four months in jail for contempt of Congress. He was convicted after refusing to give the committee testimony or documents.
Another Trump aide, Peter Navarro, is due to stand trial for contempt of Congress next month after refusing to co-operate with a similar subpoena.
The select committee is looking into Trump supporters’ violent storming of the US Capitol building on 6 January, 2021.
The panel’s seven Democrats and two Republicans unanimously voted last week to force the Republican to testify about his role in the riot.
Lawmakers say Mr Trump egged on his supporters to reject the 2020 presidential election result, leading them to storm the halls of Congress in an effort to prevent Joe Biden from being certified as the winner.
In a letter that accompanied the subpoena, Chairman Bennie Thompson and Vice-chairwoman Liz Cheney said the committee had “assembled overwhelming evidence, including from dozens of your former appointees and staff, that you personally orchestrated and oversaw a multi-part effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election”.
“You took all of these actions despite the rulings of more than 60 courts rejecting your election fraud claims and other challenges to the legality of the 2020 presidential election, despite having specific and detailed information from the Justice Department and your senior campaign staff informing you that your election claims were false, and despite your obligation as President to ensure that the laws of our nation are faithfully executed,” the letter added.
Mr Trump’s legal team slammed the subpoena.
“We understand that, once again, flouting norms and appropriate and customary process, the Committee has publicly released a copy of its subpoena,” said lawyer David Warrington.
“As with any similar matter, we will review and analyze it, and will respond as appropriate to this unprecedented action.”
If Republicans retake control of the House of Representatives after November’s midterm elections – which is widely expected – the 6 January committee’s work will come to an end and the panel will be disbanded.
Ms Cheney – the top Republican on the panel and the daughter of former Republican vice-president Dick Cheney – will leave in January after losing a primary race in August to a Trump-backed challenger. The committee’s only other Republican member, Adam Kinzinger, plans to retire at the end of this congressional session. By Bernd Debusmann Jr
Donald Trump subpoena: His Four Biggest Legal Problems
The legal battles before Donald Trump are expansive and varied.
The former president is under investigation for everything from his handling of top secret documents to the price tag placed on his New York penthouse, and facing numerous lawsuits as well.
But four high-profile investigations could have the biggest impact on Mr Trump – personally and politically.
All are ongoing and have not resulted in criminal charges.
What’s being Investigated?
The Department of Justice is looking into the removal of government documents from the White House, which were then taken to Mr Trump’s Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, after he left office. Investigators are assessing how these documents were stored and who may have had access to them.
The former president’s sprawling beachside property was searched in August and 11,000 documents were seized including around 100 marked as classified. Some of these were labelled top secret.
Unsurprisingly, we know very little about what’s in the documents at this stage. But classified material usually contains information that officials feel could damage national security if made public.
What has Trump Said?
He’s denied wrongdoing and criticised the justice department’s investigation, branding it “politically motivated” and a “witch-hunt”.
He has offered shifting defences which have mostly hinged on the argument that he declassified the material. No evidence has yet been provided that this is true.
The former president has also argued that some of the documents are protected by “privilege” – a legal concept that would prevent them from being used in future proceedings. An independent lawyer is reviewing the seized material to determine if this is the case and that process continues.
But Mr Trump has not directly addressed the key question of why the documents were at Mar-a-Lago in the first place.
So How Serious Is It?
This is an active criminal investigation and could result in charges being filed.
Among other statutes, the Justice Department believes Mr Trump may have violated the Espionage Act by keeping national security information that “could be used to the injury of the United States”.
And as well as charges relating to the classified documents themselves, prosecutors are also looking at obstruction of justice as another potential crime.
Mr Trump’s team are now locked in a legal battle with the justice department over the investigation.
What’s being Investigated?
Prosecutors in New York are examining the Trump Organization, the former president’s family company. There are two investigations in New York – one civil and the other criminal.
Letitia James, the New York attorney general, is leading the civil investigation (which cannot result in criminal charges) and has spent almost three years looking at whether the company committed various acts of fraud over several decades in the state.
These include allegedly overstating the value of real estate, such as golf courses and hotels, in order to get more favourable loans and better tax rates.
The years-long criminal investigation, meanwhile, is being led by the Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, and is looking into the same issue as they relate to operations in New York City.
What has Trump said?
The former president and his lawyers have insisted the company did not operate illegally.
He’s accused Ms James, a Democrat, of pursuing a political vendetta, citing remarks she made before she was elected attorney general in which she vowed to sue him and branded him an “illegitimate president”.
Mr Trump, when called for an interview in the civil investigation, refused to answer questions and only confirmed his name.
So How Serious Is It?
Ms James filed a fraud lawsuit in September that it could – in theory – lead to the Trump Organization ceasing to exist in its current form.
Ms James said the former president, his three eldest children and two company executives committed numerous acts of fraud between 2011 and 2021.
The lawsuit alleges that the family inflated their net worth by billions, and is seeking $250m (£226m) that was allegedly obtained through fraudulent means. It’s also seeking various penalties, such as bans on Mr Trump and his children from serving in a leadership role in any New York business.
The criminal investigation has been quieter so far. Ms James, however, has referred her findings to federal prosecutors which could lead to a new criminal investigation being opened.
What’s being Investigated?
Mr Trump’s alleged role in the attack on the US Capitol on 6 January 2021, when a mob of his supporters stormed the building in an effort to stop the confirmation of President Joe Biden’s election victory, is under scrutiny from several federal government bodies.
The most visible has been a congressional committee that has been looking into Mr Trump’s actions. They’ve been holding televised hearings laying out their case that his election fraud claims led directly to the riot.
Following these hearings, the committee issued a legal summons ordering Mr Trump to testify and provide documents. By Gareth Evans in Washington
