In historic move, House Jan. 6 committee votes to subpoena Trump

Americans deserve to hear from him, Rep. Liz Cheney said.

ByAlexandra Hutzler, Tal Axelrod, and Isabella Murray
Last Updated: October 14, 2022, 11:18 AM EDT

The House Jan. 6 committee on Thursday, after a months-long hiatus, held its ninth public hearing since June, and possibly its last in its investigation into the U.S. Capitol attack.

The panel focused on the role of former President Donald Trump, alleging he was front and center of a plot to overturn the 2020 election and in a historic development, voted unanimously to subpoena Trump to testify.

Here's how the story developed:

Oct 13, 2022, 1:03 PM EDT

Committee hasn’t ruled out a Trump subpoena, Thompson says

Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., told ABC News ahead of the hearing that the committee hasn't ruled out issuing a subpoena to Trump.

The panel has yet to ask Trump for his testimony, but has centered their hearings on what they described as his “sophisticated” plan to carry out an attempted coup.

Thompson also said that "there's always a possibility" the committee asks for former Vice President Mike Pence's testimony. But then Thompson said that after this hearing, the committee is unlikely to call any new witnesses they haven't already spoken with.

--ABC News’ Katherine Faulders and Will Steakin

Oct 13, 2022, 12:08 PM EDT

Will Trump, Pence be asked to testify before the investigation ends?

Committee aides, during a background call with reporters on Wednesday, wouldn't shed any light on whether and when they would call Trump or former Vice President Mike Pence to formally testify before the panel before their investigation is wrapped.

Pence this summer said he would "consider" testifying if invited by the committee but expressed constitutional concerns about such a scenario, citing his "unique role" as the then-vice president.

Vice chair Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., told ABC News' Jonathan Karl in August that she hopes Pence will appear before the committee but declined to weigh in on whether they would ask Trump to testify.

"I don't want to get in front of committee deliberations about that," Cheney said. "I do think it's very important, as I said in the first hearing or the second hearing, you know, his interactions with our committee will be under oath."

--ABC News' Katherine Faulders

Oct 13, 2022, 10:45 AM EDT

Trump’s 'state of mind' to be a key focus, aides say

Lawmakers will focus on Trump's "state of mind" leading up to, during and after the insurrection during Thursday's session, committee aides told reporters.

"What you're going to see is a synthesis of some evidence we've already presented with that new, never-before-seen information to, let's say, illustrate Donald Trump's centrality from the time prior to the election," an aide said.

While there won't be any live witnesses in the hearing room, the panel's expected to air new documentary evidence and video footage depicting efforts to respond as the violence broke out on Jan. 6, 2021.

The hearing is expected to kick off at 1 p.m.

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