Jan. 6 committee's Day 8 hearing to focus on Trump's actions on day of Capitol attack

WASHINGTON - The Jan. 6 committee is scheduled to continue its whirlwind series of hearings for the summer on Thursday during prime time.

After seven hearings outlining in detail the machinations of former President Donald Trump, his aides and staffers to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, the panel will put its focus on how Trump spent his time on Jan. 6, 2021.

Reps. Elaine Luria, D-Va., and Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., will lead the hearing. Luria will present evidence on behalf of the committee for the first time. The panel will give a "minute-by-minute" overview of the day of the insurrection, according to Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., committee vice chair.

What will the panel cover? Will there be future hearings? Here's what we know:

Follow along live: Jan. 6 hearing to dig into Trump's actions during attack. Kinzinger, Luria leading hearing - live updates

Schedule: Jan. 6 committee hearing schedule: Here's when to expect next the Capitol riot hearing

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Hearing witnesses: Former Trump aides Matthew Pottinger, Sarah Matthews expected to testify at Jan. 6 hearing

What time is the Jan. 6 hearing on Thursday?

The hearing is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET.

How to watch the Jan. 6 committee hearing

USA TODAY will livestream the hearings here on USATODAY.com. The hearings have also been televised on C-SPAN and cable news networks.

Who has testified? Ketchup, regrets, blood and anger: A guide to the Jan. 6 hearings' witnesses and testimony

What will the hearing focus on?

The hearing will likely feature Trump's reluctance to call off the riot or comply with pleas for help from members of Congress.

The panel is also expected to detail the 187 minutes between Trump's "Stop the Steal" rally at the Ellipse the morning of Jan. 6 and his tweet telling the rioters to go home.

Matthew Pottinger, former deputy national security adviser, and Sarah Matthews, a former deputy press secretary in the Trump White House, are expected to testify. Both witnesses resigned shortly after the Jan. 6 insurrection.

Matthews told the committee she issued a statement on the day of the attack that said she was "honored" to serve in the Trump administration but was "disturbed" by that day's events. In prerecorded testimony, the former White House aide accused Trump of pouring "gasoline on the fire" when he tweeted that former Vice President Mike Pence was a "coward" during the insurrection on the Capitol.

Pottinger, who resigned the night of the attack, told the committee that Trump's tweet about Pence forced his hand.

"One of my staff brought me a printout of a tweet by the president, and the tweet said something to the effect that Mike Pence, the vice president, didn't have the courage to do what should have been done," Pottinger said in a videotaped deposition played at the June 28 hearing. "I read that tweet and made a decision at that moment to resign."

More: Jan. 6 committee expects Secret Service to meet Tuesday deadline on text messages

On Friday, the committee also subpoenaed the U.S. Secret Service for text messages reportedly deleted on the day of the insurrection after being briefed by a watchdog for the Department of Homeland Security on their disappearance. The messages were apparently deleted “as part of a device-replacement program.”

The National Archives on Tuesday asked the Secret Service to investigate the erasure of the messages and report back in 30 days. Meanwhile, the security agency has balked at any suggestion that it purposely deleted text messages. Spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi told the Associated Press that the agency has been "fully cooperating with the (Office of Inspector General) in every respect — whether it be interviews, documents, emails, or texts.”

What did we learn at the last hearing?

The last hearing of the Jan. 6 committee featured witness testimony from a former member of anti-governmental, militant group the Oath Keepers and a Trump supporter who participated in the assault on the Capitol.

• Former Trump advisers Michael Flynn and Roger Stone had connections to both the Oath Keepers and white supremacist group, the Proud Boys, according to committee member Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md.

• Stephen Ayres, an Ohio man criminally charged for illegally entering the Capitol on Jan. 6, said he and other rioters thought the election results would be overturned. Ayres said he would have left the building earlier if Trump told the rioters to leave.

• Former Oath Keepers spokesperson Jason Van Tatenhove said he is scared for the next election cycle after seeing Trump's efforts to overturn the election and the Capitol riot.

• Former Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale said in text messages after Jan. 6 that he felt guilty over his role in getting Trump elected and that the former president's rhetoric led to the death of an insurrectionist.

• Several GOP lawmakers — including Reps. Brian Babin, R-Texas; Andy Biggs, R-Ariz.; Matt Gaetz, R-Fla.; Louie Gohmert, R-Texas; Paul Gosar, R-Ariz.; Andy Harris, R-Md.; Jody Hice, R-Ga.; Jim Jordan, R-Ohio; Scott Perry, R-Pa.; and then-congresswoman-elect Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga. — met with Trump's adviser Rudy Giuliani and chief of staff Mark Meadows to discuss former Vice President Mike Pence's role in overturning the election results.

• Kylie Kremer, who organized the "Stop the Steal" rally at the Ellipse on Jan. 6, knew that Trump was going to ask his supporters to march on the Capitol.

• Giuliani and White House counsel Eric Herschmann traded barbs during a meeting over election fraud claims. Giuliani called Herschmann the P-word while Herschmann told Giuliani to "sit your effin’ ass back down.”

• Trump tried to contact a witness after the last hearing in June, when the committee heard testimony from former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson. The panel offered the information to the Department of Justice.

Who is Roger Stone?: What to know about the longtime Trump ally and Republican strategist

Thompson might be absent

Rep. Bennie Thompson, chair of the committee, tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday, according to a Tuesday statement released by his office. The Mississippi Democrat said he will isolate for several days, yet he instructed the Jan. 6 panel to move forward with the hearing Thursday.

Will there be more hearings?

The Jan. 6 committee has not announced future hearings, though a final report on the revelations from the eight sessions is expected in the fall.

Contributing: The Associated Press

Reach out to Chelsey Cox on Twitter at @therealco.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: January 6 committee's Day 8 hearing will examine Trump's actions