• The Jan. 6 select panel is looking at asking the DOJ for a prosecution of Trump for obstruction of Congress.
• NYT reported that investigators are also searching for evidence that other Republicans have engaged in wire fraud.
• According to legal experts, a Trump criminal referral will almost certainly fail.

The House select committee that investigated the Capitol riot of January 6 has not shied away from filing criminal charges against former White House officials, Justice Department officials, or possibly fellow members.

The panel of select members is now considering pursuing the ex-president, who was accused of inciting the insurrection.

One of two Republicans who make up the bipartisan committee was Rep. Adam Kinzinger. He confirmed that the panel is looking into whether Donald Trump has committed any crime in connection to the Capitol riot.

The New York Times reported this week that House investigators are investigating whether Trump and his associates tried to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s victory in 2020.

The report states that the select committee is investigating whether evidence exists that Republicans raised money based on false claims of election rigging and engaged in wire fraud.

This marks a new aggressive phase in the months-long investigation by the January 6 select committee into the Capitol riot, and events surrounding it. It also presents new challenges to House investigators.

They've already made criminal contempt referrals to Trump associates who refused subpoenas. This includes former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon and former chief of staff Mark Meadows. Former Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark. But requesting criminal charges against a former President is another matter.

An "alleged crime against Congress" like contempt or "Congress has discovered possible crimes about which DOJ might not be aware" is a reason to have a criminal referral from Congress, Randall Eliason, a former federal prosecutor, noted Tuesday. "Neither of these is true here. Referring is bad.

Insider heard another former Justice Department official echo that sentiment, saying that there is "not a possibility" that the Justice Department will pursue criminal charges against Congress if they are referred.

The former official said that Attorney General Merrick Garland is still thinking about the "straightforward contempt charges" "He doesn’t have the desire to indict an ex-president."

His public statements and media reports have extensively documented Trump's actions prior to, during, and following the riot. Trump hyped a "Save America” rally near the Capitol, where he urged his supporters to "fight as hell" against Biden's win. He also watched the violence unfold on television, and ignored advice to call his supporters out.

Trump has increased his claims of election fraud and downplayed violence at the Capitol in the months that followed. Trump stated Sunday in Dallas that "What happened on January 6 was an act of protest against a rigged electoral process, that's it was," while on tour with Bill O'Reilly, a former Fox News commentator. "This was not an insurrection."

It is unclear what new evidence, if any that the House select committee has uncovered during its investigation, that has not been reported.

However, Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney (vice chair) hinted recently that the panel is ready to move forward with a referral for Trump.

Cheney stated at a news conference that "hours passed without any action by the president in defense of the Congress of the United States against an assault while we were trying counting electoral votes." "Did Donald Trump corruptly attempt to obstruct the official proceeding of counting electoral votes?

Trump has asked the courts to block the Jan. 6 investigation.

The Washington, DC Circuit Court of Appeals denied Trump's request. It stated in a blistering 68 page opinion that, while Trump recognizes the constitutional protections of executive confidentiality, it "shouldn't be used to shield, Congress or the general public, information that reflects a clear, apparent attempt to subvert Constitution."