January 6 committee recommends criminal charges against Donald Trump
The committee investigating the January 6 storming of the US Capitol is recommending criminal charges against former President Donald Trump.
They include conspiracy to defraud the United States; obstructing an official proceeding (the certification of Joe Biden‘s election victory); conspiracy to make a false statement and inciting or assisting an insurrection.
The recommendation is mainly symbolic – with the US Justice Department responsible for deciding whether or not to prosecute Mr Trump.
But committee chair, Bernie Thompson, said: “We have every confidence that the work of this committee will help provide the road map to justice.”
A number of recommendations are made in the final report, which accuses Mr Trump of engaging in a “multi-part conspiracy” to overturn the election.
Mr Thompson said “accountability” is the most important focus.
“We will also show that evidence we’ve gathered points to further action beyond the power of this committee or the congress to help ensure accountability in the law,” he said.
“Accountability that can only be found in the criminal justice system.”
Mr Thompson also criticised Mr Trump for “breaking” faith in the democratic system, telling the committee: “If we are to survive as a nation of laws and democracy, this can never happen again.”
Describing Mr Trump’s behaviour on the day of the riots, vice chair Liz Cheney said: “In addition to being unlawful… this was an utter moral failure and a clear dereliction of duty.
“Evidence of this can be seen in the testimony of President Trump’s own White House counsel and several other White House witnesses.
“No man who would behave that way, at that moment in time, can ever serve in any position of authority in our nation again.
“He is unfit for any office.”
Ms Cheney said the committee’s work is only at the beginning, describing it as an “initial step” in addressing Mr Trump’s “efforts to remain in office illegally”.
Prosecutors are now considering the implications of the conduct described in the committee’s report, Ms Cheney added.
Donald Trump and Ivanka in 2016
Trump’s daughter ‘not forthcoming’
Mr Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, a White House advisor during her father’s tenure, apparently knew more than she was prepared to divulge, the committee believes.
The executive summary of the report said Ms Trump was “not as forthcoming” as other aides, including then-White House counsel, Pat Cipollone, about the former President’s conduct.
The committee accused her of showing a “lack of full recollection of certain issues”.
Portions of former press secretary Kayleigh McEnany’s testimony “seemed evasive” and did not seem as forthright as other press office staff, the committee said.
Ex-Trump advisor, Hope Hicks, was also accused of not being forthcoming when grilled about whether she told the president he needed to encourage supporters to be peaceful.
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The inquiry into the Capitol riots heard a phone call where Trump threatened Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger
‘A big scam’
Mr Trump’s lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, claimed voting machines had flipped votes to President Biden.
However, the committee report alleges that Mr Giuliani admitted during his deposition: “I do not think the machines stole the election”.
Other Trump lawyers and supporters invoked their Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination when asked to show proof they found the election was stolen.
The committee panel said: “Not one of them provided evidence raising genuine questions about the election outcome.
“In short, it was a big scam”.
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The hearing into the 6 January Capitol riot has been given extraordinary new details of Donald Trump’s mindset during the events
Trump ‘tried to contact witnesses’
The committee said it was aware of “multiple efforts” by Mr Trump to contact unnamed witnesses during the probe, with the Department of Justice made aware of at least one incident.
Some witnesses were also described as “unnecessarily combative” while testifying, with some failing to be credible when pleading ignorance of certain circumstances – in particular those whose jobs or income were linked to Trump-affiliated organisations.
Read more:
Analysis: Why the January 6 committee vote matters to Trump
Retired policeman gets longest US Capitol riot sentence for assaulting officer
Mr Trump has already launched a campaign to seek the Republican nomination for a second run in the White House in 2024.
Making an address from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, he said: “America’s comeback starts right now.”
He announced his leadership bid in November despite facing a number of investigations into the riot, which claimed the lives of five people including a police officer.
Mr Trump is said to have watched the violence unfolding on television in the White House dining room instead of intervening as supporters stormed Congress.
More than 140 police officers were injured during the disorder, which caused millions of dollars to the Capitol.
Former US president Joe Biden has prostate cancer, his office has said.
The statement said Mr Biden, who left the White House in January, is reviewing options for treatment with his physicians.
It read: “Last week, President Joe Biden was seen for a new finding of a prostate nodule after experiencing increasing urinary symptoms.
“On Friday, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, characterised by a Gleason score of 9 (Grade Group 5) with metastasis to the bone.
“While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management.
“The President and his family are reviewing treatment options with his physicians.”
File pic: Reuters
According to Cancer Research UK, a Gleason score of 9 means the cancerous cells “look very abnormal” and the disease is “likely to grow quickly”.
A source familiar with Mr Biden and his family’s thinking has told Sky’s US partner network, NBC News, that the former president is considering “multiple treatment options” – including hormone treatment for the cancer.
They added he is at his home in Wilmington, Delaware, and that as of now, it is unclear where the former president will be treated.
Mr Biden, 82, was the oldest person to ever serve as president, with concerns about his health raised regularly during his campaign for re-election last year.
After a poor debate against Donald Trump in June, he withdrew from the 2024 election and endorsed his vice president Kamala Harris.
In February 2023, he had a skin lesion removed from his chest that was a basal cell carcinoma, a common form of skin cancer.
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A Mexican navy ship has hit the Brooklyn Bridge during a promotional tour in New York City.
The New York Fire Department said authorities were responding to injuries but had no details about how many people might have been hurt or whether they were on the vessel or on the bridge.
Sky’s US partner network NBC News reports that at least three people were seriously injured in the incident.
The Mexican navy said in a post on X that the Cuauhtemoc, an academy training vessel, was damaged in the accident, which has prevented it from continuing its voyage.
Eyewitness video of the collision posted online showed the mast of the ship, which was flying a large Mexican flag, scraping the underneath of the bridge.
Pic: AP
The vessel then drifted toward the edge of the river as onlookers scrambled away from shore.
The Mexican navy said the status of personnel and material was under review by naval and local authorities, which were providing assistance.
The Cuauhtemoc is about 297ft long and 40ft wide, according to the Mexican navy. It sailed for the first time in 1982.
Pic: AP
Each year, it sets out at the end of classes at the naval military school to finish cadets’ training.
It left the Mexican port of Acapulco, on the Pacific coast, on 6 April with 277 people onboard, the navy said at the time.
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One person has died in a bomb explosion near a reproductive health clinic in California, authorities have said.
The incident took place in Palm Springs, a city two hours east of Los Angeles, and is being investigated as a possible car explosion.
The city’s mayor Ron DeHarte said one person died in the blast, adding that the bomb was “either in or near” a vehicle. The deceased’s identity is not known, Palm Springs police said.
Dr Maher Abdallah, who runs the American Reproductive Centers clinic, told the Associated Press his facility was damaged but all staff were safe and accounted for.
The explosion damaged the office space where the practice conducts patient consultations, but the IVF lab and stored embryos were unharmed, he added.
“I really have no clue what happened,” he said. “Thank God today happened to be a day that we have no patients.”
Debris covers the ground after the explosion. Pic: ABC7 Los Angeles/AP
In a statement posted on Facebook the clinic said it was “heartbroken” to learn someone died in the explosion and added: “Our deepest condolences go out to the individuals and families affected.”
It continued: “Our mission has always been to help build families, and in times like these, we are reminded of just how fragile and precious life is.
“In the face of this tragedy, we remain committed to creating hope – because we believe that healing begins with community, compassion, and care.
The clinic will be fully operational on Monday, it added.
“This moment has shaken us – but it has not stopped us. We will continue to serve with strength, love, and the hope that brings new life into the world,” the statement concluded.
Pic: ABC7 Los Angeles/AP
The Palm Springs city government said in a post on Facebook that the explosion happened on North Indian Canyon Drive, near East Tachevah Drive, before 11am local time (6pm GMT).
A burned-out car can be seen in a parking lot behind the building in aerial footage.
The blast caved in the clinic’s roof and blew debris across four lanes of the road.
Another person said he was inside a cannabis dispensary nearby when he felt a massive explosion.
Nima Tabrizi said: “The building just shook, and we go outside and there’s massive cloud smoke.”
Investigators from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are travelling to the scene to help assess what happened.
California governor Gavin Newsom has been briefed on the explosion, his press office said.
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