House Jan. 6 committee releases interview transcripts of 34 witnesses
The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday released the interview transcripts of 34 witnesses who were interviewed as part of the sprawling 17-month probe.
House Jan. 6 committee Chairman Bennie Thompson had initially said the committee would be releasing its voluminous final report Wednesday, but the panel released a statement Wednesday afternoon saying the report's release would be delayed until Thursday.
Among those witnesses whose testimony was released are former President Donald Trump's one-time national security adviser Michael Flynn, Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio, Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes, Infowars host Alex Jones, onetime Trump campaign adviser Roger Stone, and Trump-backed attorneys John Eastman and Jenna Ellis.
Most of the transcripts included responses from the witnesses invoking their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.
The committee said on Monday it would refer Eastman to the Department of Justice for prosecution after he drafted a plan for Trump to cling to power by falsely claiming then-Vice President Mike Pence could reject legitimate electors during the Jan. 6 certification of the vote.
The committee also said it would make multiple criminal referrals to the DOJ on at least four charges against Trump in connection to his actions surrounding the attack on the Capitol.
The referrals, however, are viewed as largely symbolic, as the DOJ is not obligated to act on them.
The referrals were announced Monday in conjunction with the release of a 160-page summary report that fingered Trump as the "central cause" of the Capitol attack.
Trump has dismissed the work of the committee, mocking it as the "Unselect Committee" and calling it a "political Witch Hunt."
Thompson said the full final report will be posted online once it's released to the public.
