Democrats to Spotlight Trump Election Threats at January 6 Hearing

At a hearing on the fifth anniversary of the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol next week, House Democrats plan to look back as well as forward—countering Republicans' efforts to "rewrite history and whitewash" the attempted insurrection by President Donald Trump's supporters and warning of the GOP's threats to upcoming elections and to US democracy.

The event next Tuesday will be an unofficial one, as Democrats are in the minority and do not have the authority to call formal hearings.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) said in a Dear Colleague letter to other lawmakers on Monday that the hearing would shed light on the "toxic priorities" of Trump, who after taking office in January issued blanket pardons for nearly 1,600 people who were charged in connection to the January 6 attack.

" Donald Trump promised to lower the high cost of living on day one of his presidency," wrote Jeffries. "One year later, costs are out of control, America is too expensive, and Republicans believe that the affordability crisis is a hoax. They have done nothing to lower costs for everyday Americans, but are gutting healthcare and enacted massive tax breaks for their billionaire donors."

While doing nothing to make life more affordable for families—and helping to make household grocery and electricity bills higher—Trump has pardoned hundreds of people who "brutally assaulted law enforcement officers" on January 6, including several who have been charged with new crimes and "a troubling number" who "have been arrested for child molestation, sexual assault, and kidnapping," said the Democratic leader.

"Republicans own the failed economy, their broken promise to lower costs, and the crime spree the dangerous criminals pardoned by the president have visited on our country," wrote Jeffries.

The mob on January 6 attempted to stop the certification of the 2020 election, which Trump had spent weeks at that point insisting had been stolen from him and which the president and his allies continue to deny was won by former President Joe Biden.

But Republicans including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) have made efforts to sanitize the attack, which took place after Trump held a rally urging his supporters to march "over to the Capitol building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard" and said they would see whether "Republicans stand strong for integrity of our elections."

After Trump took office this year, Johnson announced a new congressional subcommittee that would expose "the false narratives peddled by” the previous bipartisan panel that issued a report in 2022 about Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election results and his encouragement of the attack.

Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), who led the bipartisan committee, will also oversee next Tuesday's hearing.

In addition to exposing "the election deniers who hold high-level positions of significance in the executive branch," wrote Jeffries on Monday, the panel "will examine ongoing threats to free and fair elections posed by an out-of-control Trump administration."

The president has pushed Republican-led state legislatures in Texas, Missouri, North Carolina, and other states to draw new congressional maps to help the GOP maintain power in the 2026 midterm elections.

He signed an executive order in March that purported to require proof of citizenship for people who register to vote—an effort that was blocked by a federal judge in October—and the US Department of Justice has sued several states to compel them to share voter registration data with the federal government.

Legal experts have emphasized that the president does not have the authority to change how elections are run, despite Trump's continued efforts.

Jeffries said the January 6th Select Committee would join Thompson in leading the hearing, which is scheduled for 10:00 am Eastern time next Tuesday.