Schiff says ‘evidence is there’ to make a criminal referral against Trump

by Olafimihan Oshin - 11/20/22 12:24 PM ET

Greg Nash
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) returns from a break in a House Jan. 6 committee hearing on Tuesday, July 12, 2022 focusing on the ties between former President Trump and far-right extremist groups.

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) said on Sunday that he believes there is “evidence” for the House select committee investigating the Jan 6., 2021, attack at the Capitol to make a criminal referral against former President Trump.

“But I can say that I think Judge Carter in California who analyzed just one small piece of this concluded that the former president and others were engaged or there was evidence they were engaged in a criminal conspiracy, evidence they were engaged in an effort to stop an official proceeding, the Joint Session,” Schiff, a member of the Jan 6. committee, told ABC’s “This Week co-anchor Jonathan Karl, noting that the committee is currently reaching a conclusion about making those criminal referrals.

“I think the evidence is there to make a referral, and we just have to decide whether that’s the course we are going to take.”

Schiff also told Karl that the committee is discussing various ways to hold Trump in contempt of Congress amid his refusal to corporate with the committee for its investigation and their recent subpoena toward him.

Schiff also signaled his frustration over former Trump-era officials who also refused to comply with the committee’s investigation.

“But once again, Donald Trump took the cowardly way out. Unlike other presidents that have fulfilled their duty even after office and testified before Congress, very — not surprising with the former president, it was disappointing with the former vice president who, like others before him, sadly, said I can’t share this information with the American people and Congress, but I could write a book about it,” Schiff added. “That’s very disappointing.”

Former President Trump, whose facing a slew of legal investigations from federal and state authorities, announced his candidac y for the 2024 presidential election last Tuesday.

Trump’s presidential announcement comes as some within the GOP have questioned the 76-year-old politician’s influence and future in the party after Republicans scored underwhelming results in this month’s midterm elections.