that was an accurate count that has been certified. he said something to the effect of, i don t want people to know we ve lost, mark. this is embarrassing. figure it out. we need to figure it out. i don t want people to know that we lost. why did you decide to march to the capitol? basically, you know, the president got everybody round up, told everybody had on down. we basically just followed what he said. i remember said something to the effect of, i don t care if they have weapons. they re not here to hurt me. do you remember which crimes mr. cipollone was concerned with? in the days leading up to the sixth, we had conversations about potentially obstructing justice or defrauding the electoral count. after presenting all of that damning evidence and testimony, most of it on television, the january 6th committee came to a clear conclusion. trump did nothing to stop
the deadly violence for obvious reasons. he thought it was all justified. he incited it. and he supported it. we know from reporting that the january 6th committee s presentation lit a fire under the justice department. it was impossible to ignore. attorney general merrick garland had been prosecuting cases against many of the riders who joined on the capitol that day. but there was disagreement within the justice department about how much its investigation should focus on trump himself. but after the january 6th committee presented its case last summer and last fall, it was clear that trump s behavior warranted a federal criminal investigation. and while the january 6th committee was finishing up its final report, merrick garland made an announcement. i have concluded that it is in the public interest to appoint a special counsel. i strongly believe that the normal processes of this department handle all
effect of, i don t want people to know we ve lost, mark. this is embarrassing. figure it out. we need to figure it out. i don t want people to know that we lost. why did you decide to march to the capitol? basically, you know, the president got everybody riled up, told everybody had on down. we basicalhe said. i remember the president said something to the effect of, i don t care if they have weapons. they re not here to hurt me. do you remember which crimes mr. cipollone was concerned with? in the days leading up to the sixth, we had conversations about potentially obstructing justice or defrauding the electoral count. after presenting all of that damning evidence and testimony, most of it on television, the january 6th committee came to a clear conclusion. trump did nothing to stop the deadly violence, for obvious reasons. he thought it was all justified.
see that with 741 criminal convictions already wrapped up by the department of justice, they are finally getting to the very center of the entire conspiracy because it was donald trump who changed the dates of all of these protests that have been called for january 20th, essentially those were statements that the maga people will continue to protest against biden and his presidency. but he shifted it from the 20th to the sixth, saying no, this is the date of the peaceful transfer of power. this is the last day we are able to stop this. all of it really flowed out of his brainstorm that there could be an inside political coup and a violent insurrection taking place at the same time. i mean, given the gravity of what is alleged to have occurred here under trump s direction, and the fact that trump is running for the presidency again, the fact that he has not been shy about suggesting he will pardon himself and other people involved in the january 6th
that is hanging over the former president s head, it is astounding. given your granular understanding of all of this, does it surprise you that you are seeing so much action at the federal and state level in and around january six? no, alex. the facts is what is driving this. early in the select committee s investigation it was pretty obvious to us that those facts were pretty compelling. the facts were pretty consistent, the facts demonstrated criminal conduct, that is what the select committee ultimately recommended and the manifestations of that are what you are seeing both with respect to the activity coming out of the special counsel s office, the target letter and these state indictments, but it is all essentially reaffirming that essential truth that this was a criminal scheme. i can imagine it s reaffirming for someone on the inside, for as long as you have been. tim, it was great to speak with you, thanks for making the time tonight. when we come back, what happens when