The House Select Committee is moving forward in its investigation into the Capitol Hill election protest that turned into a failed coup d’etat and riot on Jan. 6, 2021, that left nine dead and more than a dozen injured. On June 9, 2022, the committee will begin public hearings of the investigation into the insurrection attempt.

There will be eight scheduled hearings, which will take place during the day with several to be broadcast during prime time. Next month’s hearings regarding the Capitol Hill riot should prove to be very enlightening for Americans and those who will be watching around the world. Former president Donald J. Trump is playing a significant role in the 2022 midterm election season despite allegations of his own participation in the planning and direction of the events that took place on Jan. 6, at times blatantly admitting that he sanctioned the events.

This is glaringly evident by his support and campaigning efforts in Georgia against Republican Gov. Brian Kemp in favor of David Perdue, and U.S. Rep. Jody Hice against current Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. On why he is throwing his support to Perdue, Trump said that Kemp “betrayed Republican voters.” This so-called “betrayal” occurred back in January 2021 when Trump and several White House Cabinet members tried to bully Kemp and Raffensperger into changing the election results in what is now one of the most infamous telephone calls to be recorded, which likely will be admitted as evidence in the upcoming Select Committee hearings. During that call, Trump states that he needs Kemp and Raffensberger “to find 11,780 votes” to secure a win over Joe Biden. When Secretary of State Raffensperger refused, Trump told him the position that he was taking would be “a big risk to you.” Raffensperger says “I felt then – and still believe today – that this was a threat. Others obviously thought so too, because some of Trump’s more radical followers have responded as if it was their duty to carry out this “threat.”

In what can only be surmised as “payback” for their refusal to go along with his debunked allegations that the 2020 election was stolen, Trump is running dual campaigns this midterm season. One is a campaign to win and secure Republican leadership in Washington. The second goal is to unseat all Republicans who refused to back his claims of election fraud. Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) and Select Committee vice chair is in the Trump crosshairs as well. Trump is backing Harriett Hageman in hopes of unseating Cheney. He is slated to attend a fundraiser for Hageman in Casper, WY in upcoming days and has initiated a campaign fund in continued efforts to eliminate Cheney from the House. It is beyond obvious why Trump is extremely focused on the November midterms. His primary purpose is to thwart the Select Committee’s investigation into the insurrection attempt and riot on Capitol Hill; to shut it completely down in order to officially green-light plans to become GOP presidential candidate in 2024.

The committee hearings, however, may slow things down for Trump. With more information coming out regarding the planning and coordination of the “Stop The Steal” rally that preceded the actual riot, and in fact was the catalyst for it on so many levels, it is evident that the GOP, in its clumsy and ineffectual efforts to make the failed coup to topple the democratic process in this country somehow magically disappear from the collective consciousness of Americans, and perpetuate “the big lie” of election fraud, has a few flies in its ointment. Last week, Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-GA) was notified by the House Select Committee to submit information pertaining to what some Democrat lawmakers on Capitol Hill called “reconnaissance tours” he led on Jan. 5, 2021, the day before the failed insurrection attempt. When the allegations first arose after Jan. 6 that unnamed Republican lawmakers had given tours of the Capitol, Loudermilk issued an immediate press release to refute those claims, remarking that “a Member of Congress accusing another Member of committing a crime, without evidence, is morally reprehensible and a stain on this institution. No Republican Member of Congress led any kind of ‘reconnaissance’ tours through the Capitol, proven by security footage captured by the U.S. Capitol Police.” Yet a year and some months later, Loudermilk suddenly remembered that he did lead a tour of “a constituent family” through the Capitol on Jan 5.

The June 9 Select Committee hearings will also be required viewing because of the testimonies of Donald Trump, Jr., Ivanka Trump, Mark Meadows, and of course Rudy Giuliani, who met with the committee earlier this week. The testimony of Giuliani, who can be considered an uncooperative witness, will be revealing in some ways regarding the methodology behind his accusations that Dominion Voting Systems tampered with their machines to secure a win for Biden. Dominion is suing Giuliani for $1.3 billion dollars on the grounds of defamation. It will be beneficial to learn the context of what was going on inside the White House after the election and leading up to, and after Jan. 6, 2021.

Speaking of context, the hearings will hopefully also shed more light on the text messages and emails between Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ wife, Ginni Thomas, White House Chief of Staff Meadows and Rep. Shawnna Bolick (R-AZ). Ginni Thomas, who apparently is a staunch Trump supporter and political mover and shaker in Washington, was doing serious overtime after the 2020 election. In text messages and emails provided to the committee, Thomas’ efforts to overthrow the Biden victory are painfully apparent. In one email to Rep. Bolick, Thomas stated that “Article II of the United States Constitution gives you an awesome responsibility to choose our state’s electors. This means you have the power to fight back against fraud and ensure our elections are free, fair and honest.” Of course, as Thomas was writing this, in nearly every court in each battleground state in which Giuliani and Trump officials filed lawsuits alleging widespread fraud, the court found zero evidence of such. The Select Committee has not yet issued a subpoena to Thomas to provide testimony at the public hearing.

Next month’s House Select Committee public hearings will bring a wealth of insight and critical information pertaining to the failed insurrection. Perhaps more players and participants in the riot and ensuing chaos will be highlighted, along with illuminating details of how House and Senate GOP members helped to orchestrate such a massive attempt at overthrowing democracy. Americans deserve to know the truth and have the opportunity to stand up for democracy. Rep. Cheney told a crowd upon the acceptance of the John F. Kennedy Profile In Courage Award this week: “Today, that role is ours as we face a threat we have never faced before … a former president attempting to unravel our constitutional republic. At this moment we must all summon the courage to stand against that. The question for every one of us is in this time of testing: Will we do our duty? Will we defend our Constitution? Will we stand for truth? Will we put duty to our oath above partisan politics? Or will we look away from danger, ignore the threat, embrace the lies, and enable the liar?”