The Jan. 6 Committee Should Finish Its Job — Quickly
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- In the year since the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, the government has responded better than might’ve been expected. Law-enforcement agencies have arrested and charged at least 700 people in 47 states. Congressional investigators have interviewed hundreds of witnesses. Federal courts have resisted efforts by former President Donald Trump and his allies to deny Congress access to documents and testimony. Despite fears that extremists might be inspired to commit more acts of violence, there have been no repeat performances.
Such progress demonstrates the resilience of America’s democratic institutions. It also underscores the need for the House select committee investigating Jan. 6 to quickly complete its inquiry and resist pressure to expand its scope. An open-ended probe that attempts to bring criminal charges against Trump and his inner circle would only undermine confidence in the committee’s findings and embolden the same forces that staged the insurrection in the first place.
The congressional investigation began slowly. After Republicans first rejected proposals for a bipartisan commission, it took nearly seven months for the Democratic-controlled House to form a select committee. The panel has held only one public hearing, in which Capitol Police officers described being assaulted by the rioters. Some former officials tied to the Trump White House, as well as Republican lawmakers who communicated with Trump on Jan. 6, have ignored subpoenas or otherwise refused to cooperate.
Despite such obstruction, the committee has collected more than 30,000 records related to the attack. It has pressured recalcitrant Trump aides by holding them in contempt of Congress for failing to testify, which could subject them to prosecution. It has subpoenaed cell phone records of more than 100 people and requested access to Trump’s presidential records, held by the National Archives. (In December, a federal appeals court denied Trump’s attempt to prevent the release of those records; Trump has appealed to the Supreme Court.)
But while the committee has made progress, it now needs to pick up the pace. Its chair, Representative Bennie Thompson, says the committee only plans to release “interim” findings by the summer. Adhering to such a schedule risks extending the probe deep into 2022. The committee should complete its work and issue an unredacted public report well ahead of the November midterm elections. That’s more than enough time to produce a comprehensive account of the events surrounding the insurrection — and to recommend reforms to prevent future attempts to overturn presidential election results.
At the same time, the committee should back away from suggestions that it will recommend that senior Trump administration officials be criminally prosecuted. While such referrals would no doubt satisfy the former president’s critics, they would validate Republican arguments that the investigation is a partisan witch hunt. They’re also unnecessary. Should the Justice Department ultimately determine that Trump or members of his administration committed crimes, it can still bring charges against them, with or without a referral.
The siege of the Capitol one year ago amounted to an attack on American democracy. The Jan. 6 committee can best serve the public interest by delivering an unvarnished account of what transpired on that day. The rest will be up to voters.
More From Other Writers at Bloomberg Opinion:
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Trump Skips Jan. 6 Event, But His Toxin Remains: Timothy L. O’Brien
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Jan. 6 Rioters Don’t Face a Double Standard: Stephen L. Carter
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Tell the Jan. 6 Story to Boost Democracy, Not Democrats: Jonathan Bernstein
Editorials are written by the Bloomberg Opinion editorial board.
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