Trump questions linger as DOJ expands Jan. 6 probe
by Rebecca Beitsch and Harper Neidig - 07/16/22 6:00 AM ET
The Department of Justice (DOJ) is facing pressure as the House Jan. 6 select committee’s presentation of damning evidence involving the Trump White House has raised questions about whether federal prosecutors have kept pace with the lawmakers’ inquiry and how long the former president can escape being directly investigated.
Select Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) told reporters this week the panel was nearing an agreement to share some of its work on Trump’s “alternate elector” scheme that would send faulty certificates to Washington in an attempt to reverse President Biden’s victory in key states.
The move generated a more positive tone from members of the committee who have often been critical of the speed of DOJ’s investigation.
“Well, I think they’re looking at more than that. And I think over time, you will see a little broader view on the investigation,” Thompson said Thursday.
Thompson said he was speaking from “personal knowledge” but declined to elaborate.
The Justice Department has reportedly been caught off guard by some of the select committee’s revelations.
According to a New York Times story this week, former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson’s stunning testimony last month included some assertions that were new to federal prosecutors, prompting DOJ leadership to more directly discuss Trump’s role, including in the presence of Attorney General Merrick Garland.
“It seems clear that DOJ is behind the committee investigatively, which is hard to comprehend and unforgivable from DOJ’s perspective,” Elie Honig, a former federal prosecutor in the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s office, told The Hill.
“Federal prosecutors have every investigative advantage over Congress. Federal prosecutors have far more personnel than Congress has. They have much more powerful subpoenas than Congress has, they have the ability to conduct search warrants, to do wiretaps, they have the ability to use the threat of prison time to flip cooperators. Congress has none of that and yet Congress appears to be way out ahead of DOJ.”
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https://thehill.com/policy/national-security/3561907-trump-questions-linger-as-doj-expands-jan-6-probe/
