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The Aftermath, Episode 6: Going Dark

Natalie K. Orpett, Kyle Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, Doug Letter, Molly E. Reynolds
Monday, June 26, 2023, 12:00 AM
In the final episode of Season 1, we examine the hidden activity of the Jan. 6 Committee during the year between its first hearing and its second.

Published by The Lawfare Institute
in Cooperation With
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We’re pleased to bring you a new episode of The Aftermath, our narrative podcast series on the search for accountability in response to the Jan. 6 insurrection:

The finale of Season 1 delves into what was going on behind the scenes in the Jan. 6 committee’s investigation in the months between its first public hearing to its second, almost a year later. To many observers, the Jan. 6 committee’s public silence seemed to indicate that it simply wasn’t doing much. The records trickling out of the court system, however, told a much different story. Episode 6 details the committee’s legal battles over subpoena compliance, executive privilege, contempt, investigating fellow members of Congress, and more. It was these battles that provided glimpses into the committee’s efforts to build a case against the former president to prove that Trump and his allies did, in fact, attempt to shatter the foundation of American democracy.




Natalie Orpett is the executive editor of Lawfare and deputy general counsel of the Lawfare Institute. She was previously an attorney at the law firm Jenner & Block, where she focused on investigations and government controversies, and also maintained an active pro bono practice. She served as civilian counsel to a defendant in the Guantanamo Military Commissions for more than eight years. She also served as counsel to the National Security and Foreign Policy Legal Team of the Biden-Harris Transition Team.
Kyle Cheney is a senior legal affairs reporter for Politico.
Adam Kinzinger is an American former politician, senior political commentator for CNN, and lieutenant colonel in the Air National Guard. He served as a United States representative from Illinois from 2011 to 2023.
Douglas Neal Letter is an American attorney. He was general counsel to the United States House of Representatives from 2018 to 2022.
Molly Reynolds is a senior fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution. She studies Congress, with an emphasis on how congressional rules and procedure affect domestic policy outcomes.

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