Commission of January 6th recommends filing charges against Trump

The commission on January 6th used its final public meeting Monday to wrap up its 17-month investigation with a simple closing statement: All roads lead to Donald Trump.

Members focused on how the former president’s direct involvement in efforts to overturn the 2020 election makes him responsible for the violence that unfolded at the US Capitol.

The commission made the case to both the public and the Justice Department that evidence exists to bring criminal charges against Trump in multiple criminal statutes, including obstructing an official proceeding, defrauding the United States, making false statements, and aiding or abetting to an insurrection.

The commission released an executive summary of its report on Monday and plans to release the full report on Wednesday, as well as transcripts of the commission’s interviews.

The commission referred Trump to the Justice Department on at least four criminal charges and said in its executive summary that it had evidence of possible charges of conspiracy to injure or impede an agent and seditious conspiracy.

In practice, the reference is effectively a symbolic measure. It doesn’t require action by the Justice Department, and anyway, Attorney General Merrick Garland has already appointed special counsel, Jack Smith, to take over two Trump-related investigations, including the one on Jan. 6th.