WASHINGTON (AP) --- Donald Trump was indicted on felony charges Tuesday for working to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the run-up to the violent riot by his supporters at the U.S. Capitol, as the Justice Department moved to hold him accountable for his efforts to block the peaceful transfer of power.
The four-count indictment reveals new details about a dark chapter in modern American history, detailing handwritten notes from former Vice President Mike Pence about Trump’s relentless goading as well as how Trump sought to exploit the violence of the Jan. 6, 2021 riot to remain in office.
Even in a year of rapid-succession legal reckonings for Trump, Tuesday’s criminal case, with charges including conspiring to defraud the United States government that he once led, was especially stunning in its allegations that a former president assaulted the underpinnings of democracy in a frantic but ultimately failed effort to cling to power.
It accuses him of repeatedly lying about the election results, turning aside repeated overtures from some aides to tell the truth but conspiring with others to try to improperly change vote totals in his favor. It says that on the day of the Jan. 6, 2021, riot, he attempted to “exploit” the chaos by pushing to delay the certification of the election results even after the building was cleared of violent protesters.