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15 June 2022
Committee puts "big lie" to the test
After attracting an audience larger than Sunday Night Football for the first hearing, the January 6 House Select Committee’s second public hearing continued its focus on former President Donald Trump. In addition to Trump’s former campaign manager, Bill Stepien, saying two factions developed within the campaign, his “Team Normal” and another led by an allegedly inebriated Rudy Giuliani, two key revelations came to the fore:
- While maintaining Trump support publicly, senior officials like former Vice President Mike Pence knew and top advisors repeatedly told the president that his claims about a fraudulent election were baseless.
- Donations for efforts seeking to reverse the election result, such as that US$250 million raised toward the Election Defense Fund, ultimately only went to fund the January 6 rally and President Trump’s political action committee.
While the House Select Committee publicised significant allegations and members made clear that they did not conduct a criminal investigation, the members said they were prepared to submit evidence of criminal behaviour to the Department of Justice.
NEWS WRAP
Framework to stem gun violence
Bipartisan gun-control legislation within grasp | A bipartisan group of senators reached a framework agreement for gun-control measures in what could lead to the first set of new federal restrictions in nearly three decades. The package includes money to encourage states to implement 'red flag' laws that would remove guns from potentially dangerous people, funding for school safety and mental health resources, and expanded background checks for gun purchases for people between the ages of 18 and 21. READ MORE HERE
Kennedy sworn in as US ambassador to Australia | Caroline Kennedy, the only surviving child of former US President John F. Kennedy, was sworn in as the 27th US ambassador to Australia on Friday. “There is no country more committed to [American] values than our close ally and Five Eyes partner Australia,” she told senators at her confirmation hearing in December. READ MORE HERE
Australia considering NATO summit visit | Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is considering whether to attend the Madrid NATO summit in late June as part of a show of support from Indo-Pacific partners including leaders from Japan, South Korea and New Zealand. NATO Deputy Secretary-General Mircea Geoană said the organisation wanted to hear from Indo-Pacific leaders as part of what he called the "transformation" of the alliance. READ MORE HERE
COVID-19 vaccine plan for children under five | The US Food and Drug Administration is set to decide whether or not they plan to authorise COVID-19 vaccines for children under the age five this week. The nation’s 18 million children under five are the only age group not yet eligible for vaccination. READ MORE HERE
Rising US inflation to impact global economy | As US petrol prices hit US$5 a gallon, the annual 8.6 per cent US inflation rate for May – another 40-year record – dashed hopes the rate peaked in April. Experts expect what's happening in America will impact the rest of the world through capital flows, US dollar borrowing costs and exchange rates. READ MORE HERE
The numbers tell you the winner and the loser. For the most part, the numbers don't lie. But if something doesn't add up ... you go to court to get resolution ... That's what it means to respect the rule of law.
Rep Bennie Thompson (D-MS), Chairman of the House select committee investigating the January 6 Capitol attack | 13 June 2022
Seventy-one years ago representatives of Australia, New Zealand, and the United States signed the ANZUS mutual security treaty in San Francisco to reinforce stability in East Asia after the outbreak of the Korean War.
Since then the Diggers and GIs have served side-by-side in every major conflict threatening regional and global order. Today the alliance enjoys strong bipartisan support in both capitals as the transitions from Donald Trump to Joe Biden and Scott Morrison to Anthony Albanese demonstrated.
But the reality is that during these seven decades of mateship there were also moments of doubt, risk and divergence. And the coming decades promise to serve up some of the toughest geopolitical challenges yet.
Are we up for it?
This is an excerpt from an article published in The Australian
BY THE NUMBERS
Committee scores bumper TV ratings
The prime-time broadcast of the first public hearing of the House Committee investigating the January 6 riots attracted more viewers than the nation's highest rating show, Sunday Night Football, with nearly 20 million Americans tuning in.
In comparison, 11 million Americans watched the first day of former president Trump's televised impeachment trial, while 38 million viewers tuned into Biden's 2022 State of the Union address in March this year.
VIDEO
Disinformation and digital disruption after the 2020 election - Dr Jennifer Hunt and Elliott Brennan
Following the 2020 US election, an emboldened community of conspiracy theorists spread rampant disinformation about the presidential election and the efficacy and intention of COVID-19 vaccines.
The United States Studies Centre hosted a discussion on these issues in December 2020 with investigative journalist for NBC News Brandy Zadrozny and USSC Non-resident Fellow and Lecturer at the National Security College at ANU, Dr Jennifer Hunt in conversation with former USSC Research Associate Elliott Brennan.
Catch more analysis on the United States on the USSC YouTube channel.
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Institute Building H03
University of Sydney NSW 2006
