After the federal appeals court arguments on immunity for a President, Donald Trump spoke to reporters in DC (he took no questions).

Trump's statement was peppered with a familiar list of lies about the 2020 election.

It's the same ole greatest hits. 1/ Trump: "We found tremendous voter fraud"

Trump has never stopped repeating what's become a never-ending firehose of false claims about the 2020 election. He has no evidence - but keeps making the same accusations which led to a mob attacking the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. 2/

I went back this week to watch more of the internal U.S. Capitol security tapes from Jan. 6.

My focus this time was on the various doors to see how rioters got into the Capitol.

Police officers didn't welcome them in, that's for sure. 🧵 1/ There were 5 main doors where rioters got in on Jan. 6:

➡️Senate Wing Door (first floor)
➡️Senate Fire Door (first floor)
➡️Upper West Terrace Door (basement, West front)
➡️Columbus Doors (center steps, second floor East side)
➡️House East Front (second floor, House steps) 2/

Courtesy of the House Administration Committee, I had 3 hours today to view Capitol security tapes from Jan. 6.

What I saw was familiar - Donald Trump supporters attacking police, smashing their way into the Capitol, and forcing lawmakers to flee from the House and Senate. 🧵1/ I have no idea how people think these Capitol security tapes will exonerate anyone or change what happened on Jan. 6.

Frankly, the tapes are simply chock full of video evidence that can send a lot of people to jail. 2/

This is the Fulton County, GA mug shot of Michael Roman, who was one of those indicted along with Donald Trump.

Roman worked for the Trump campaign, and helped organize slates of fake electors in a series of states where Trump lost to Joe Biden. 🧵1/ Roman reportedly gave copies of fake elector documents from WI & MI to Matt Stroia, who was then the Chief of Staff to Rep. Mike Kelly R-PA.

In his deposition with the Jan. 6 committee, Roman repeatedly took the Fifth when asked about his contacts with Stroia. 2/

On Meet the Press today, Mike Pence said he asked the Senate Parliamentarian directly in a meeting on Jan. 3, 2021 if she had received any certificates from fake GOP electors.

Pence said the answer was no.

But emails from that day paint a much different story.

🧵 1/ On Jan. 2, Pence aide Hannah Lankford emailed Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough, asking for copies of any alternate (fake) electors sent to the Senate.

We know this from emails released by the Jan. 6 committee.
2/ https://t.co/WCBwzJ6f0Lgovinfo.gov/content/pkg/GP…

Read the unsealed indictment against former President Donald Trump storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.usco… Trump had classified documents spilling out of boxes onto the floor of a storage area at Mar-a-Lago marked "SECRET/REL TO USA, FVEY"

Here's the inventory of what was seized by the FBI at Mar-a-Lago. Raising the most questions are the empty folders which once held 'CLASSIFIED' government documents. Were those returned already? Or are they still missing?
storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.usco… I count 48 empty folders with 'CLASSIFIED' document banners. 43 were in Trump's office - the other five were in the Mar-a-Lago storage room.

PACER sucks. Everyone can agree with that.

An armed man tried to attack the FBI field office outside Cincinnati. FBI agents, Ohio State Highway Patrol, and local police chased the suspect, who was killed during a standoff.

I covered Ohio in Congress for 32 years, so I decided to see what state lawmakers were saying. 🧵 Rep. Tim Ryan D-OH - who is running for U.S. Senate - expressed his thanks to the police who caught the suspect.

https://twitter.com/RepTimRyan/status/1557765834164125697

Here is the White House statement in favor of the Senate reconciliation bill
whitehouse.gov/wp-content/upl… The text of the revised reconciliation bill is at democrats.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/…

The Senate is in session on this Saturday. There will be a procedural vote at 12:30 pm on a nomination. After that, we'll see if Democrats are ready to push ahead with their reconciliation bill. The Parliamentarian finished her work well after midnight. Kamala Harris just needs 9 tie-breaking votes this weekend to become the all-time leader in that category for a Vice President. She has 23 so far.

John C. Calhoun had 31 tie-breakers in the Senate over 7+ years.

The big economic numbers out this morning:

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. employers add 528,000 jobs in July as labor market continues to defy raging inflation; unemployment rate 3.5%. 3.5% unemployment is the lowest jobless rate ever recorded since the feds started keeping those stats. It happened three times back in 2019 and 2020 - just before the arrival of the Coronavirus outbreak.

On June 16, the Senate voted 84-14 for the PACT Act (HR 3967). veterans.senate.gov/services/files…

On July 13, the House voted 342-88 for the final PACT ACT (S. 3373). docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/…

What changed in the bill from June 16 to July 13? Two things. Short weekend thread 🧵 The first change in the bill was how it was named / procedurally referred to. The document at this link goes through the bills and compares them for any differences. docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/… 2/

Debate is underway on the House floor related to assault weapons. Democrats say rifles like the AR-15 are 'weapons of war' and should be strictly limited. Republicans say guns like the AR-15 are 'sporting rifles.'

If all debate time gets used, a final vote maybe 5-6 pm 3 Democrats voted against the resolution providing for debate on the assault weapons ban: Golden ME, Vicente Gonzalez TX, and Schrader OR.

3 Republicans did not vote: Griffith VA, Harshbarger TN, and Zeldin NY. GOP absences could determine if this bill passes later today.

Lawmakers and veterans advocates rallying outside the Capitol for a vets health bill blocked yesterday by a GOP filibuster A very frustrated Jon Stewart is here (hands on his hips) as lawmakers veterans and advocates demand the GOP end their filibuster

🚨🚨It's now been an hour since the Senate cloture vote started on the PACT Act - to help vets exposed to toxic burn pits. As of right now, backers don't have 60 votes - which is a big surprise, since the bill passed 84-14 a few weeks ago The last two 'No' votes were from Hagerty R-TN and Cornyn R-TX. Both of them voted 'Yes' on June 16.

There was one exchange with Cassidy Hutchinson in her testimony which was a reminder of how House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy continues to stonewall the Jan. 6 investigation. A short thread 🧵 At Donald Trump's rally on Jan. 6, as soon as Trump said he was going with the crowd to the Capitol, McCarthy called Hutchinson. "You told me the whole week you aren't coming up here," she quoted McCarthy as saying. "Why would you lie to me?" bit.ly/3IeNqb2 2/

Of all of the surveillance footage released today of the group with Rep. Barry Loudermilk R-GA, this one is the most puzzling to me.
This guy is literally taking a picture of a staircase in the basement of the Longworth Building. 1/🧵 I know this staircase very well. If you go up two flights, you come out by 1100 LHOB, the main entrance to the Ways & Means Committee.

And - you are right at the main entrance to the Longworth Building on Independence Ave. across from the Capitol. 2/

Jan. 6 committee issues video re: Rep. Barry Loudermilk R-GA

https://twitter.com/January6thCmte/status/1537075019918065666

Looking at the video, it shows people in Loudermilk's group taking pictures of spots that might seem an odd focus for Capitol Hill regulars. The guy here looks to be taking a picture of a staircase going up from the basement in the Longworth Building.

Rep. Liz Cheney R-WY says Donald Trump accepted the advice on Election Night of 'an apparently inebriated Rudy Giuliani' to claim there was widespread election fraud in 2020. Trump aides talk about Giuliani at the White House on Election Night and the efforts to convince Trump to declare victory and make claims of possible fraud.

Who is going to have the worst day on Capitol Hill? Probably the Homeland Security Secretary, who will face tough questions at two House hearings about the situation at the southern border. Much more from Congress in today's "Regular Order."

jamiedupree.substack.com/p/immigration-… The latest tapes of House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy include a full segment on my reporting about Rep. Barry Moore R-AL. You can hear the disgust from McCarthy / Scalise / Cheney as they are read the Jan. 6 tweets that Moore deleted (I had the screenshots)

https://twitter.com/Acyn/status/1519125173034643456