Inside the Jan. 6 Committee Hearing (photos)

The cavernous Cannon Caucus Room on Capitol Hill, measuring 74-feet-long by 54-feet-wide and topped by a 35-foot-high ceiling, was built in 1908 to impress. It is, of course, the scene of a series of televised hearings by the U.S. House Select Committee investigating the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

The seventh Committee hearing, which took place at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, July 12, portrayed a president, who — out of options to stay in power — summoned his most loyal supporters to Washington to stop Congress from certifying the 2020 presidential election and announcing Joe Biden the victor based on the Electoral College vote count. 

Among those in attendance sitting stoically in the first row of spectators were members of law enforcement who were seriously injured as a result of the rioting, along with family members of officers who did not survive the attack.

This hearing featured two live witnesses: 39-year-old Stephen Ayres of Champion, Ohio, who pleaded guilty last month to charges related to the attack; and 47-year-old Jason Van Tatenhove of Colorodo, a former spokesman for the right-wing militia group the Oath Keepers. Representatives Jamie Raskin (D-Maryland) and Stephanie Murphy (D-Florida) led the questioning. 

The hearing also introduced for the first time the taped testimony of White House lawyer Pat Cipollone, and a groundbreaking revelation from committee vice chair Liz Cheney who announced at the very end of the hearing that former president Donald J. Trump attempted to contact a witness — a possible instance of witness tampering — after the panel’s last hearing.

View a slideshow of Jeff Malet’s photos from inside the hearing on July 12 by clicking on the photo icons below.

tags2020 electionCanon Caucus RoomCapital RiotsCapitol HillCongressDonald J. TrumpHearingJamie RaskinJan. 6 HearingJanuary 6Jason Van TatenhoveLiz CheneyphotographypoliticsPresident BidenriotStephanie MurphyStephen Ayrestrumpwitness tampering