WASHINGTON -- An 800-page report set to be released today by House investigators will conclude that then-President Donald Trump criminally plotted to overturn his 2020 election defeat and "provoked his supporters to violence" at the Capitol with claims of widespread voter fraud.
The resulting Jan. 6, 2021, riot of Trump's followers threatened democracy with "horrific" brutality toward law enforcement and "put the lives of American lawmakers at risk," according to the report's executive summary.
"The central cause of January 6th was one man, former President Donald Trump, who many others followed," reads the report from the House Jan. 6 committee, which is expected to be released in full today. "None of the events of January 6th would have happened without him."
Ahead of the report's release, the committee Wednesday released 34 transcripts from the 1,000 interviews it conducted over the last 18 months. Included in the release is testimony from the onetime leaders of two extremist groups, the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers, both of whom were involved in planning ahead of the rioting. Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes was convicted last month of seditious conspiracy for his role in the planning, and former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and four other members of the extremist group are in court on similar charges this month.
The report's eight chapters of findings will largely mirror nine hearings this year that presented evidence from more than 1,000 private interviews and millions of pages of documents. They tell the story of Trump's extraordinary and unprecedented campaign to overturn his defeat and his pressure campaign on state officials, the Justice Department, members of Congress and his own vice president to change the vote.
A 154-page summary of the report released Monday detailed how Trump, a Republican, amplified his claims on social media and in public appearances, encouraging his supporters to travel to Washington and protest Democrat Joe Biden's presidential election win. And how he told them to "fight like hell" at a rally in front of the White House that morning and then did little to stop the violence as they beat police, broke into the Capitol and sent lawmakers running for their lives.
It was a "multi-part conspiracy," the committee concludes.
The damning report comes as Trump is running again for the presidency and also facing multiple federal investigations, including probes of his role in the riot and the presence of classified documents at his Florida estate. A House committee is expected to release his tax returns in the coming days -- documents he has fought for years to keep private. And he has been blamed by Republicans for a worse-than-expected showing in the midterm elections, leaving him in his most politically vulnerable state since he won the 2016 election.
While the lasting impact of the investigations remains to be seen -- most Republicans have stayed loyal to the former president -- the committee's hearings were watched by tens of millions of people over the summer. And 44% of voters in November's midterm elections said the future of democracy was their primary consideration at the polls, according to AP VoteCast, a national survey of the electorate.
"This committee is nearing the end of its work, but as a country we remain in strange and uncharted waters," said the panel's chairman, Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, at the meeting Monday to adopt the report and recommend criminal charges against Trump. "We've never had a president of the United States stir up a violent attempt to block the transfer of power. I believe nearly two years later, this is still a time of reflection and reckoning."
The "reckoning" committee members are hoping for is criminal charges against Trump and key allies. But only the Justice Department has the power to prosecute, so the panel sent referrals recommending that the department investigate the former president on four crimes, including aiding an insurrection.
While its main points are familiar, the Jan. 6 report will provide new detail from the hundreds of interviews and thousands of documents the committee has collected. Transcripts and some video are expected to be released as well over the coming two weeks. Republicans take over the House on Jan. 3, when the panel will be dissolved.
Information for this article was contributed by Eric Tucker, Jill Colvin, Lisa Mascaro and Farnoush Amiri of The Associated Press.
A video of former President Donald Trump is shown on a screen as the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol holds its final meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington, Monday, Dec. 19, 2022. From left, Rep. Stephanie Murphy, D-Fla., Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., Vice Chair Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., and Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va.. (Al Drago/Pool Photo via AP)
Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., speaks as the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol holds its final meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington, Monday, Dec. 19, 2022. From left, Rep. Stephanie Murphy, D-Fla., Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., Thompson, Vice Chair Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., and Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va. (Al Drago/Pool Photo via AP)
Committee chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., speaks to reporters after the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol holds its final meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington, Monday, Dec. 19, 2022. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
FILE - Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., center, speaks as the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol holds its final meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington, Dec. 19, 2022. From left, Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., Thompson and Vice Chair Liz Cheney, R-Wyo. A report set to be released by House investigators will conclude that then-President Donald Trump criminally plotted to overturn his 2020 election defeat and “provoked his supporters to violence” at the Capitol with false claims of voter fraud. The resulting Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection threatened democracy and the lives of lawmakers and police. (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool Photo via AP, File`)