‘Trump Is Going to Be on That Criminal Referral List’: CNN Reports Jan 6. Committee Wants Him at ‘Center’ of DOJ Probe

CNN reporter Jamie Gangel said the House Jan. 6 committee will recommend to the Department of Justice that former President Donald Trump be criminally charged.

On Wednesday morning, the network reported the committee was “considering” making a criminal referral, but later in the day, Gangel stated unequivocally on air that it will happen.

The committee is investigating Trump’s role in the January 2021 insurrection, where a mob of his supporters stormed the Capitol to overturn the 2020 presidential election. Trump has falsely maintained the election was stolen from him.

During Wednesday’s Situation Room, Wolf Blitzer noted that committee member Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) told NPR he believes Trump committed crimes.

“So what does that tell you?” Blitzer asked Gangel.

“The committee is not being shy, Wolf,” she answered. “Donald Trump is going to be on that criminal referral list – one of my sources said front and center. The real question is, who else is going to be on that list?”

She went on to say she doesn’t know who else will be flagged by the committee, which does not have the power to prosecute but can make such recommendations to the DOJ.

“We don’t have names yet,” she continued. “We don’t know how many, but a source familiar with the committee’s work told me that this is not going to be some wide-ranging list, that the committee is going to be very deliberate. They are going to make referrals for people about crimes that they think they really have strong, substantive evidence to hand over to DOJ.”

Blitzer turned to CNN legal analyst Elie Honig, who predicted that such a referral would likely include an allegation of obstructing Congress and conspiracy to defraud the country.

“If I had to forecast what will likely be in the criminal referrals that Jamie just talked about, I think they’re going to be focusing on obstruction of Congress, the effort to try to block Congress from counting up the electoral votes, and a conspiracy to defraud the United States of a free and fair election,” he said.

Watch above via CNN.