Trump accused of criminal conspiracy in Capitol riot

Trump and his associates have been accused of criminal conspiracy by attorneys for the January 6 committee; some of the wealthiest Russians are having their assets seized.

Tonight's Sentences was written by Ellen Ioanes

Trump, his cronies, and criminal conspiracy

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

• Former President Donald Trump and others in his circle may have committed crimes in their quest to overturn the 2020 election, according to lawyers for the House January 6 committee. The attorneys accused Trump and some of his key allies, including attorney John Eastman, of conspiracy to defraud the US and with the obstruction of an official proceeding of Congress in attempting to stop electoral votes from being counted. [Washington Post]
• The argument was outlined in a civil case in California, where Eastman is attempting to block a subpoena from the committee requesting documents related to Trump’s attempt to overturn the 2020 election. The committee’s lawyers responded to the case in a filing Wednesday, using evidence gathered by the committee including more than 550 interviews to make its case. [NYT / Luke Broadwater and Alan Feuer]
• Despite the serious accusations, it’s not clear exactly how the filing will affect Trump and the others accused. The House committee has no ability to charge Trump or any of his associates with the crimes the attorneys accuse them of in the filing; they must refer any charges to the Justice Department for formal charges to be filed. [AP / Farnoush Amiri, Eric Tucker, and Mary Claire Jalonick]
• The news comes just after Joshua James pleaded guilty to seditious conspiracy — the most serious charge leveled against any of the January 6 defendants — on Wednesday for his role in the attacks on the US Capitol building and the attempt to overturn the 2020 election. James admitted to working with Oath Keepers founder Stuart Rhodes to amass ammunition, tactical gear, burner phones, and firearms components like scopes and magazines in preparation for “violence in the event of a civil war.” [WSJ / Aruna Viswanatha and Alexa Corse]
• On Thursday, the criminal trial against Guy Reffitt, a member of the 3 Percenters militia facing multiple charges for his role in the attacks, began. Reffitt recorded himself saying, “We’re taking the Capitol before the day is over, ripping them out by their hair,” and specifically threatened Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell while at the Capitol on January 6, 2021. [Politico / Josh Gerstein and Kyle Cheney]

The Russian elite and the sting of sanctions

• French customs officials seized a yacht reportedly belonging to Igor Sechin, the head of Russian state oil company Rosneft. Sechin has been a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin since the 1990s and has been targeted by both US and European Union sanctions. [Reuters / Tassilo Hummel and Alasdair Pal]
• Western bodies have ramped up measures targeting Russia’s super-rich following Putin’s invasion of Ukraine last week; Sechin’s $120 million vessel is the latest casualty. Some Kremlin insiders are sending their yachts to the Maldives, which has no extradition treaty with the US, to try and evade seizure. [Washington Post / Timothy Bella and Amy Cheng] 
• The US announced Thursday that it would issue new sanctions against eight additional Russian elites, including Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin press secretary, and their families and associated companies. Visa bans against 19 other Russians and 47 of their family members were also announced Thursday. [Bloomberg / Nick Wadhams and Jennifer Jacobs]
• The US Department of Justice also announced on Wednesday the formation of its new KleptoCapture task force, aimed at enforcing the government’s measures and punishing those who try to evade the sanctions. “We will leave no stone unturned in our efforts to investigate, arrest, and prosecute those whose criminal acts enable the Russian government to continue this unjust war,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement announcing the new task force. [The Hill / Rebecca Beitsch]

A Texas court has paused an investigation into the parents of a trans teen in the state but has allowed investigations into other cases on the grounds of child abuse to continue. [NYT / J. David Goodman]

• US President Joe Biden is seeking an immediate approval of $10 billion in aid for Ukraine and support for Eastern European partners, for a number of purposes including defense and humanitarian assistance. [WSJ / Siobhan Hughes and Natalie Andrews]
• More than 1 million refugees have left Ukraine since the war started one week ago. [NPR / Jerome Socolovsky and Jonathan Franklin]
• The International Cat Federation has banned Russia from international competitions due to the invasion of Ukraine. [Washington Post / Jennifer Hassan]

“When war enters your country, people are dying and you live under bombings and missiles, you start valuing the simple things. You start checking up on your friends and family more. You’re checking to see if they’re alive and if they spent the night at the bomb shelter or in their bed.”

[Olena, a 22-year-old Ukrainian woman, on the war that forced her to flee her home city of Kyiv on Monday]

Gov. Greg Abbott has instructed child protection officials to investigate the parents of transgender children. Dallas Morning News reporter Lauren McGaughy explains why. [Spotify]

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