Defense & National Security — Gearing up for prime-time Jan. 6 hearing

by Jordan Williams - 06/09/22 7:13 PM ET

The House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol will hold its first public hearing in months tonight at 8 p.m. EST.

We’ll look ahead to what to expect. Plus, we’ll talk about the Senate’s vote to advance legislation expanding care to veterans who were exposed to toxins during their military service.

This is Defense & National Security, your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. For The Hill, I’m Jordan Williams. A friend forward this newsletter to you? Subscribe here.

First Jan. 6 hearing kicks off

The House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol is holding the first in a series of public hearings on Thursday at 8 p.m. ET.

The panel has spent months conducting dozens of interviews and issuing multiple subpoenas as they examine what happened before, during and after the attack.

The witnesses: Testifying before the panel will be Nick Quested, a filmmaker who recorded the first moments when rioters first entered the Capitol.

The committee will also hear from Caroline Edwards, a U.S. Capitol Police Officer who was seriously injured as rioters forced their way into the building.

Trump in the middle: The panel will try to put former President Trump in the middle of the hearing, relying on recorded testimony from former Trump officials and his family members.

“We will be revealing new details showing that Jan. 6 was the result of a coordinated, multistep effort to overturn the results of the 2020 election and stop the transfer of power from Donald Trump to Joe Biden,” a select committee aide said on a call with reporters on the eve of Thursday’s prime-time hearing.

“And indeed, that former President Donald Trump was at the center of that effort,” the aide added.

Some of the videotaped depositions shared will be those with “Trump White House officials, senior Trump administration officials, Trump campaign officials and indeed Trump family members,” the aide said.

Drawing GOP Ire: Hours before the hearing, House Republicans announced their intent to conduct their own investigation into the Jan. 6 committee should they overtake leadership of the chamber.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said that members will seek information on the Capitol’s security council from Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who at that time was the majority leader.

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fl.) criticized the hearing, calling it “Hollywood-paid political advertisement” during an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity.

TRUMP RAILS AGAINST JAN. 6 PANEL

Former President Trump blasted Thursday’s prime-time Jan. 6 committee public hearing and continued to push unsubstantiated claims that the election was “rigged.”

In a statement released via Save America PAC, Trump referred to the committee as the “unselect committee of political thugs.”

He referred to the Capitol riot as the “greatest movement” in the history of the U.S., adding that it was aimed at “making America great again.”

“The Unselect Committee didn’t spend one minute studying the reason that people went to Washington, D.C., in massive numbers, far greater than the Fake News Media is willing to report…” Trump said.

Zelensky: Fate being decided in Severodonetsk

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Thursday that the fate of the eastern part of the country is being decided in the city of Severodonetsk as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine still rages on.

In his daily presidential address, Zelensky said that Severodonetsk remains the epicenter of the ongoing conflict with Russia in the Donbas region, adding that Ukraine has defended its positions in the region and caused mass casualties among Russian forces.

The ‘epicenter’ of Donbas: “According to the results of this day, the 105th day of the full-scale war, Severodonetsk remains the epicenter of the confrontation in Donbas,” Zelensky said in his address. “We defend our positions, inflict significant losses on the enemy.”

Zelensky also said that the battle of Severodonetsk will be the most difficult throughout the ongoing conflict, expressing his gratitude toward those who have defended the battle-torn region.

Gaining new ground: The comments come as Ukraine’s defense ministry said on Thursday that it has captured new ground in the southern part of the country after a counterattack in the Kherson province, according to Reuters.

The battle of Severodonetsk, a small industrial city in eastern Ukraine, has been one of the bloodiest of the conflict, leading to mass causalities on both sides, Reuters reported.

Read the story here.

Biden makes nomination for US Africa Command

President Biden has nominated Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Michael E. Langley to serve as commander of U.S. Africa Command, the Pentagon announced Thursday.

As The New York Times points out, Langley would be the first Black four-star Marine Corps officer if he is confirmed to the role

Langley currently serves as commander of U.S. Marine Corps Forces Command; commanding general, Fleet Marine Force Atlantic; and commander, Marine Corps Forces North, Norfolk, Virginia.

He assumed all three roles on Nov. 3, 2021, according to his biography.

ON TAP TOMORROW

The House Oversight and Reform Subcommittee on National Security will hold a hearing on “The U.S. and International Humanitarian Response to Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine” at 9 a.m.
The Centers for Strategic and International Studies will host a discussion “Addressing Rising Tensions Between the DRC and Rwanda” at 10 a.m.
The Atlantic Council will host a discussion entitled “Are Russia Sanctions Working” at 11 a.m.
The Brookings Institution will hold a discussion on “The global rise of white supremacist terrorism” at 12 p.m.
The International Institute for Strategic Studies is hosting the “Asia-Pacific Regional Security Assessment 2022 launch” at 4 p.m.

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