Trump’s Jan. 6 Coup Attempt Could Be Back In The Headlines Just In Time For The Election

WASHINGTON — Donald Trump’s coup attempt that ended with the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol may be on the cusp of making new headlines, just weeks ahead of the November election.

Or not.

That decision is now in the hands of U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who will determine when and how much to make public of a detailed accounting of special counsel Jack Smith’s evidence backing up the four felony charges against Trump. That could include material never before seen, such as grand jury testimony from then-Vice President Mike Pence and Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows.

Whether and how much any of those details will matter to voters in the campaign’s final weeks, though, is an open question.

“Very, very unlikely,” said Republican pollster Neil Newhouse. “Jan. 6 is already baked into this election cake.”

Fellow Republican David Kochel, a consultant and veteran of numerous campaigns, said he also doubts that any new information or details about testimony will change many minds.

“If you care about Jan. 6, you’re already for Harris,” he said about Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee. “I guess anything helps. And when Trump is covered wall to wall, it’s usually unhelpful to him.”

That appears to be the view of Trump’s defense lawyers, who have been openly arguing that it would be unfair to allow the public to see evidence of his actions undermining the last presidential election in the days before the coming one.

“President Trump is the leading candidate in the presidential election, which is just weeks away. The [special counsel’s] office cannot be permitted to issue a massive and misleading public statement,” Trump lawyers Todd Blanche and John Lauro wrote in a Monday filing.

The filing fails to