Trump could face grave charges

The US House of Representatives January 6 committee referral of Donald Trump to the US Department of Justice for possible criminal prosecution over the 2021 Capitol riot may have no more than “the legal force of an inter-office memo”, as The Wall Street Journal reports. But that does not diminish the importance of the select committee’s findings after 18 months investigating the appalling attack by Mr Trump’s supporters on the hub of US constitutional democracy. The findings also have the potential to further damage the former president’s hopes of winning another White House term.

Whether Mr Trump is prosecuted over the grave charges of insurrection, obstruction of an official proceeding, conspiracy to defraud the US and conspiracy to make a false statement to the government suggested by the committee remains to be seen. It is up to the Justice Department to decide, not the committee. Attorney-General Merrick Garland has already appointed a special counsel, Jack Smith, to investigate Mr Trump’s crackpot and, as they turned out, profoundly dangerous schemes aimed at proving he, not Joe Biden, won the 2020 election. Part of Mr Smith’s remit is to decide whether Mr Trump’s conduct on the day of the attack was criminal and whether charging him would be prudent at a time of deep divisions in US society, not least over the former president. Evidence taken from more than 1000 witnesses, including close aides such as communications director Hope Hicks, should help him make up his mind. Ms Hicks testified that she urged Mr Trump to tweet something about the need for nonviolence but he refused, telling her: “The only thing that matters is winning.”

In its final report before Republicans assume control of the house, the January 6 committee spoke of Mr Trump’s attempts to “stir up a violent attempt to block the transfer of power to Mr Biden”. It detailed Mr Trump’s repeated attempts to cajole his loyal vice-president, Mike Pence, into rejecting electoral college endorsement of Mr Biden’s victory. Evidence from some of Mr Trump’s closest aides makes it clear his behaviour on the day and since is reason not to trust him with the presidency again. But whether he should be indicted on the charges suggested by the committee is moot. Doing so would play into his claims that he had been the target of a witch-hunt. That could potentially fire up his supporters and plunge the US into a dangerous replay of the onslaught against the Capitol. Support for Mr Trump is draining away following last month’s midterm elections. Character is revealed in a crisis and Mr Trump utterly failed the test he faced on January 6, 2021.