By — Gabrielle Hays Gabrielle Hays By — Casey Kuhn Casey Kuhn Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-jan-6-committee-says-trump-broke-the-sacred-and-centuries-old-covenant-in-his-attempts-to-overturn-the-2020-election Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter WATCH: Jan. 6 committee says Trump broke the ‘sacred and centuries-old covenant’ in his attempts to overturn the 2020 election Politics Jun 21, 2022 6:44 PM EDT Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss. gave a closing statement on June 21 during a public hearing before the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack. He said the election officials and workers who gave testimony on Tuesday’s hearing “represent the backbone of our democracy.” Watch the moment in the player above. Thompson said that Thursday’s hearing will focus on how former President Donald Trump attempted “to corrupt the country’s top law enforcement body, the Justice Department” and that Trump “was also the driving force behind the effort to corrupt the Justice Department.” WATCH: Jan. 6 committee hearings – Day 4 A clip was also played from former deputy acting Attorney General Richard Donoghue who said he would “resign immediately” if Jeff Rosen, then-acting attorney general, was replaced by Jeff Clark, a Justice Department official who was reportedly part of the effort undermine the 2020 election. Thompson said more will be heard from Donaghue during the upcoming hearing on June 23. During her closing remarks Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., said the day’s testimony reminded everyone that “we are a nation of laws” and that “it takes people who’ve made a commitment to our system to defend our system.” Cheney said to date that more than 30 witnesses have invoked their Fifth Amendment rights, including Roger Stone, Gen. Michael Flynn and attorney John Eastman. She also noted that the American people have not heard from key voices such as Trump’s former White House counsel Pat Cipollone. “Today and in our coming hearings, you will hear testimony from other Trump White House staff, explaining what Mr. Cipollone said and did, including on Jan. 6,” Cheney said, adding that the committee was working to secure his testimony. In his closing statement, Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif. Said Trump “broke” the “sacred covenant” in his attempts to overturn the 2020 election. “It was unpatriotic and fundamentally un-american when he used the power of his presidency to put enormous pressure on state, local, elections officials, and his own vice president, it became downright dangerous,” Schiff said. He then made reference to earlier testimony by former Georgia election worker, Ruby Freeman. “Ruby Freeman said the president is supposed to protect every American, not target them. She is right.” Schiff noted that our democracy “barely held” because “courageous people” who testified before the committee “put their oath to the constitution above their loyalty to one man or one party.” Tuesday’s hearing was the fourth of several planned by the Jan. 6 committee to present its findings to the public. It focused on Trump’s efforts to pressure state legislators and local election officials to change the results of the 2020 presidential election. In the year since its creation, the committee has conducted more than 1,000 interviews, seeking critical information and documents from people witness to, or involved in, the violence that day. By — Gabrielle Hays Gabrielle Hays Gabrielle Hays is a Communities Reporter for the PBS NewsHour out of St. Louis. By — Casey Kuhn Casey Kuhn Casey is a producer for NewsHour's digital video team. She has won several awards for her work in broadcast journalism, including a national Edward R. Murrow award. @caseyatthedesk
Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss. gave a closing statement on June 21 during a public hearing before the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack. He said the election officials and workers who gave testimony on Tuesday’s hearing “represent the backbone of our democracy.” Watch the moment in the player above. Thompson said that Thursday’s hearing will focus on how former President Donald Trump attempted “to corrupt the country’s top law enforcement body, the Justice Department” and that Trump “was also the driving force behind the effort to corrupt the Justice Department.” WATCH: Jan. 6 committee hearings – Day 4 A clip was also played from former deputy acting Attorney General Richard Donoghue who said he would “resign immediately” if Jeff Rosen, then-acting attorney general, was replaced by Jeff Clark, a Justice Department official who was reportedly part of the effort undermine the 2020 election. Thompson said more will be heard from Donaghue during the upcoming hearing on June 23. During her closing remarks Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., said the day’s testimony reminded everyone that “we are a nation of laws” and that “it takes people who’ve made a commitment to our system to defend our system.” Cheney said to date that more than 30 witnesses have invoked their Fifth Amendment rights, including Roger Stone, Gen. Michael Flynn and attorney John Eastman. She also noted that the American people have not heard from key voices such as Trump’s former White House counsel Pat Cipollone. “Today and in our coming hearings, you will hear testimony from other Trump White House staff, explaining what Mr. Cipollone said and did, including on Jan. 6,” Cheney said, adding that the committee was working to secure his testimony. In his closing statement, Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif. Said Trump “broke” the “sacred covenant” in his attempts to overturn the 2020 election. “It was unpatriotic and fundamentally un-american when he used the power of his presidency to put enormous pressure on state, local, elections officials, and his own vice president, it became downright dangerous,” Schiff said. He then made reference to earlier testimony by former Georgia election worker, Ruby Freeman. “Ruby Freeman said the president is supposed to protect every American, not target them. She is right.” Schiff noted that our democracy “barely held” because “courageous people” who testified before the committee “put their oath to the constitution above their loyalty to one man or one party.” Tuesday’s hearing was the fourth of several planned by the Jan. 6 committee to present its findings to the public. It focused on Trump’s efforts to pressure state legislators and local election officials to change the results of the 2020 presidential election. In the year since its creation, the committee has conducted more than 1,000 interviews, seeking critical information and documents from people witness to, or involved in, the violence that day.