The Jan. 6 Hearings Hit the Bull’s-Eye
The targets were wobbly journalists, worried Republicans, social-media influencers and even Donald Trump himself, and the aim turned out to be sure.
The message got through.
Photographer: Al Drago/Pool/AFP via Getty Images
What was once billed as six hearings over two-plus weeks by the House Select Committee investigating the attack on the US Capitol of Jan. 6, 2021 has now reached a break after eight hearings, stretched out over more than a month, with more promised in September. The committee has done about as good a job with that time as possible.
It’s found a way to take a well-known story of a president who attempted to overturn an election and keep the focus on the big picture of exactly what former President Donald Trump and his allies did to undermine the republic, while at the same time filling in lots of relevant and fascinating new details. The inquiry also planted within that story a number of sidebars likely to spark interest from the press and in social media.