Debate: Donald Trump's Accountability for the Insurrection

Description

Jan. 6, 2021, was one of the darkest days in modern American democracy. The assault on our Capitol resulted in injury, death, and destruction as well as questions about the strength and resiliency of our institutions and the guardrails in place to protect them.

Tasked with investigating the causes of the attack and issuing recommendations to prevent it from ever happening again, the U.S. House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol had many questions before it, including the role former President Donald Trump played that day. The committee has made it clear that, based on their investigation, they believe Trump was a central actor in instigating the attack and bears responsibility for it. What is less clear is what they can or should do about it—especially in regard to a criminal referral to the Department of Justice.

Johns Hopkins students and the public are invited to explore that very question: "How should the Jan. 6 committee act on its findings about former President Donald Trump?" in a debate setting with two legal experts: Ronald Weich, dean of the University Baltimore Law School, and Lisa Graves, executive director and editor-in-chief of True North Research. Both have extensive experience working in government, having served in various capacities in both the Department of Justice and Congress, making them uniquely well positioned to argue the issue. Their debate prompt is this: "Be it resolved: The Jan. 6 committee should not issue a criminal referral of former President Donald J. Trump."

The event, hosted by the SNF Agora Institute, will feature a 30-minute debate followed by a 30-minute open Q&A session in which audience members will be invited to ask questions about the arguments they just heard as well as the broader implications of a criminal referral to our government institutions, the 2024 elections, and beyond.