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your purchase will support our nonprofit operations and you have time to order the congressional directory with contact information for members of congress and the biden administration. c-spanshop.org. host: if you have questions about the ongoing federal investigation into the january 6 attack on the u.s. capitol. scott macfarlane has been on the beat as a reporter for nbc 4 washington. start with an overview on the numbers of individuals charged and prosecuted at this point and the types of crimes they are being prosecuted for. guest: at this point we are at roughly 600 federal cases. the number is fluid because new charges are coming each day. roughly 10% of those dependents -- those defendants have reached a plea agreement. we are noticing three different tiers of cases. the lower level are those

charged with misdemeanors. not accused of any damage, not accused of any assault on january 6. those who pleaded guilty to the misdemeanors have avoided prison sentences, getting probation for home detention. there is a middle tier of cases that are going to plea agreements less frequently. those are people that are accused of damage or particularly unique behavior inside the capital, say going inside the senate chamber or damaging something in the hallway. or some lower-level assault. that is the middle tier. then there is the higher tier where defendants are accused of conspiracy, of plotting and planning or being ready for action, or large-scale violent assaults against police. those cases are the epicenter of where the january 6 prosecution stands. as of this morning, we have a fifth accused conspirator who

has agreed to plead guilty. the previous defendants have agreed to cooperate with the fed. the provocative question is if the top line defendants are pleading guilty and agreeing to talk, who are they flipping? they are already the big fish. host: in these guilty pleas, how many of we seen and what are we learning about length of sentences? guest: the numbers are fluid. roughly six late -- roughly 60 plea agreements out of 630 cases. the sentence have been lower-level because the people who have gone to sentences have been in the lower tier. there is one of those mid tier defendants who has pleaded guilty and was sentenced, a man named paula hodgkins from florida, accused of being in the senate chamber january 6 with gloves and other preparatory gear. he pleaded guilty to a felony

and was sentenced to eight months in prison. he is supposed to start that sentence on monday in florida. he is trying to delay it, trying to challenge his guilty plea. the reason i bring that up is is indicative of this firehose of court filings and almost every one of the 600 cases. it could choke the court system and proving to be another hurdle for the federal courts and the federal prosecutors. host: focus on the courts and the prosecutors. who is leading the prosecution and the investigation and are all of the cases appeared before the same judge for the same court in d.c.? guest: largely they are all appearing at the u.s. district court house in washington, d.c., which is not far from the u.s. capitol complex. even though the defendants come from all across the country, california, idaho, texas, florida, they're all being moved here for their corporate meetings where they are attending them virtually.

they are all coming here which means the u.s. department -- the u.s. justice department is leading the prosecutions, centered around the united states district attorney's office. we have seen their bringing in extra help. this courthouse is accustomed to having 300 to 400 criminal cases total in a year, and they are already navigating 600 capital insurrection cases. was see public defenders being brought in. federal prosecutors being brought in to supplement the forces they had. this is a tonnage of cases happening all at once. host: back to the highest tier of cases, what has the fbi found about the extent of planning and coordination? guest: some of the planning begin november 4, the day after the election. the alleged 3% or group alleged there was communication they

would disrupt the counting of the electoral college or the inauguration. the plotting and planning goes back almost to election day. in the largest of the cases, where you have nearly two doesn't accused members of this far-right groups, prosecutors have alleged encrypted communication was used to plan ahead. to plan the trip to washington, d.c. and disruption in washington, d.c.. a hotel in virginia for use in a potential second wave if and when donald trump invokes the insurrection act. this group had a cache of guns stored in a hotel they were ready and willing to use if necessary. host: if you want to talk about

the january 6 cases, we have about 20 minutes left in our program. scott macfarlane is with us and covers it all for nbc 4 in washington. how long have you been on the specific beat focusing on these cases? guest: since january 6. since i saw that image on tv of the first time of the insurrectionists in the senate chamber. that alarming visceral image you saw of somebody sitting in the senate president's chair who was part of this breach. it was such a transformative moment for those of us who used to work as capitol hill staffers and those of us who have covered the hill for 20 years, it inspired me to make this a full-time assignment. it is the largest criminal investigation in united states history. the federal prosecutors have been clear about that. this requires a full-time attention from a lot of talented reporters across washington, d.c.. host: scott macfarlane is one of

them and if you follow his twitter feed you will get updates. he is reading the filings and at the courthouse. it is @macfarlanenews. if you want to call in, democrats (202) 748-8000, republicans (202) 748-8001, independents, (202) 748-8002. what cases stood out the most to you? guest: what is at stake is those were accused of being ready for chaos. there has been a rhetorical question ever since january 6. did this group have a plan to do this? did this mob know it would reach the capital and create havoc or was it organic? did a moment occur and everyone followed? prosecutors have been unequivocal. there is a number of defendants who were planning disruption, who used a military formation to

breach the capital complex, who had radio equipment and devices to communicate. listen to this list of makeshift weapons included in court filings. a baseball bat. a hockey stick. a sharpened flagpole. chemical spray. protective gear like tourniquet, masks, gloves, goggles will clearly come over according to prosecutors, there are people who were there who had some plan for something. not necessarily a spur of the moment decision. i am watching the cases where people are accused of planning it. i will bring us back to these far-right groups. those are the ones i am watching most closely because that is where the prosecutors have been most granular in alleging conspiracy and planning. we will watch these groups. the oath keepers, the 3%ers

, and the proud boys, who make comparisons are allegories to the american revolution, that january 6 was akin to 1776. as those cases move along we will see who, perhaps, funded this conspiracy. who was the epicenter of the planning and plotting, and to plate what role on the complex january 6. host: you think we will get answers to those questions? guest: i think we will get answers, but not necessarily soon. the oath keepers are not scheduled for trial until 2022. even that might be optimistic according to judges because of that chokehold this case seems to have on the d.c. federal court but also because of covert precautions. it is limiting court operations. the courts already have a backlog from last year. they have to work through that

and have a huge influx of january 6 cases. 2022, maybe we will see some trials. i would not be surprised to see dates in 2023,. host: louisville, kentucky is a first. this is richard, an independent. caller: i want to be fair but i called in on the republican line and the young man said he wanted to put me on the independent line. host: then richard a republican. caller: did the fbi say there was any information on actual sedition that these two dozen people wanted to take over the country? you mentioned the weapons. the bats, the pointed spears, the clubs and whatnot. were there any guns, any ar-15's , anything taken into the capital that could actually harm

like black lives matter did wear there were actual people that died? the only person that died was the young lady from california who was a veteran. thank you. host: that is richard in kentucky. guest: i've got that question a few different times. i've not seen the phrase sedition used in court filings. nor have we seen any members of congress, either cryptically or by name referenced in any of these court filings. let me be unequivocal. guns, they have seized guns from some of these defendants who were on the grounds. there is one defendant from texas who is charged with transporting a firearm with him in furtherance of civil disorder. he is facing a specific on charge. the man accused of having 11 molotov cocktails in his pickup truck was part of that mob and

is also accused of having firearms. that does not count the molotov cocktails and the pipe bomb's left outside d&c and rnc headquarters. i get that question a lot. in the wake of senator johnson of wisconsin sing this did not appear to be an armed insurrection, federal prosecutors have specified some numbers of these defendants were specifically carrying guns. host: pennsylvania, this is diana. good morning. caller: i am just mystified after watching the january 6 events. how can we not hold the president responsible for this event? host: have any of the court filings mentioned the president? guest: many of the court filings have mentioned the president but in a different way then she asks. the former president's words

have made life more difficult for a lot of these defendants. a lot of them are being held in jail pending trial. like many defendants, they are trying to get themselves released back home until trial. nobody wants to be in jail. they say they will not be a danger to the community, they will not be a threat. we have seen judges specifically say donald trump's continuing denial of legitimacy of the 2020 election makes people potentially more dangerous to the community. they cited donald trump's words and halting some of these defendants pretrial detention. with a stick and sink donald trump's continued denial make some of these defendants more dangerous. donald trump is coming up in the conversation a lot. different than what the question was. to be clear, his name is

frequently showing up in the court filings. host: there is a rally this saturday on capitol hill, a rally for those in detention calling them political prisoners. what have the courts said about charges of these folks being political prisoners? guest: prosecutors have been specific about the september 18 protest in d.c., calling it a potential threat to the capital campus. they're doing that in filings this week. on an unrelated issue over whether capitol police should release more camera footage of the capital, they say they would like to keep the video confidential because there is a non-hypothetical threat epitomized by the fact there's a protest september 18. the prosecutors have referenced it. have not heard judges reference it yet but the week is early. here's what i know. as early as today perimeter fencing will be redirected

outside the capital complex and will likely remain through the end of the week, if not early next week according to what police have said. we know it is all hands on deck for u.s. capitol police. a police force has nearly 2000 officers and a half $1 billion a year budget. all hands on deck for the local d.c. police department. by the d.c. jail a few miles away, because that is where the january 6 inmates are being held. this is a conversation where we do seem prepared. adam kinzinger said his estimates is hundreds, maybe thousands will show up. that was the same estimate he had on january 5 of the crowd estimated on january 6. host: to louisiana, this is james, a republican. caller: good morning. there were no guns confiscated in the capital and you know that.

are you on the record for requesting to see any of the 14,000 hours they will not release of that day? have you seen any of the video of roseann death where she got trampled to death and you know the name of the d.c. police officer that was seen clubbing her while she was lying on the ground? you should know her name because she was honored during the super bowl right next to that fruitcake. host: we will go to you with some of those questions. guest: there was a lot to unpack there. there are specific firearms charges against multiple defendants, including the cache of firearms they recovered, pictures of which they included in court filings. guns in the trucks of a defendant named lonnie coffman. not only are guns specifically referenced in the court filings, in some cases they have shown images of the truck.

there's a maryland defendant accused of carrying on his person on january 6. there is a texas defendant accused of carrying on his person january 6. there is no dispute over whether the prosecutors are arguing guns were found on people were spotted on people or believed to be on people who are part of the capital breach. host: sarasota, florida. good morning. go ahead. caller: i have a serious question that no one seems to have pointed out. didn't the capitol police have guns? why didn't they shoot a few of the crowd? maybe they would have then dispersed? because they were not shot at, i think the crowd felt the police were on their side, they could do with they wanted. guest: scott macfarlane? host: that is a good question -- guest: that is a good question.

what the police have testified to, including in july was the police were clearly wildly outnumbered by the mob. if there were hundreds, if not in the lower level thousands of police, there were many more people in the crowd. police have no idea what weapons that crowd was carrying. we already have some charges of carrying guns. we do not know how many others are believed to be carrying guns. our makeshift weapons as well, not just the ones i mentioned but also the acts, the tomahawk, the metal rod. the steel toed shoes. the list goes on and on what these people were accused of carrying as they faced off with police in hand-to-hand combat. i am no law enforcement expert but i know the police were

concerned if they opened fire with they have lost a bloody gun battle that would've turned a horrible day into a massacre? host: i want to remind viewers about the investigation into the shooting of ashli babbitt. guest: a capitol police officer was internally reviewed, and the capitol police department found no violation but what he did was in furtherance of protecting congress and protecting the u.s. house were ashli babbitt was shot while climbing through a broken glass window to the house speaker's lobby. we know those doors are what separates the outside, the hallways of the second floor of the capital, and members of the u.s. house, who were still being evacuated from the house chamber at that moment. capitol police did an internal investigation. the u.s. department of justice did a review as well and found

the conduct of the officer, who has publicly announced his name and explained his duties and his role that day, has been widely celebrated by law enforcement and by members of congress. host: we have heard more about other internal police investigations and some disciplinary actions. explain. guest: six u.s. capitol police officers are under disciplinary review and were found to have engaged in some level of disciplinary actions. i do not have a list in front of me. these were six out of about 2000 police officers. i know in their statement about this, u.s. capitol police emphasized it is only a small fraction and should do nothing to contain the remarkable heroic work done by police throughout that day and since. you have to be mindful. that was the first security incident and clearly the

largest, but just the first on capitol hill this year. in april there was a deadly attack against a police officer. august 19 there was a bomb threat. a man in the truck from north carolina who allegedly threatened to have a bomb shuttered the capital campus, including evacuations of buildings for hours. then there was this week, someone arrested near the democratic national committee headquarters accused of having a machete in his truck and a swastika painted on the vehicle near the democratic national committee headquarters where there was a pipe bomb in early january. host: less than 10 minutes left in our program. as a reminder for viewers were watching on c-span, we will be taking you to the senate judiciary committee for a hearing that will be happening. members already in the room. gold medalist simone biles and other star gymnast will testify before the senate judiciary committee on the investigation into larry nassar, the former

usa gymnastics doctor accused of sexually assaulting hundreds of girls and women. that hearing is where we will take you after the program. until it begins, you can chat with scott macfarlane of nbc 4 about his investigation covering the prosecution of january 6 protesters. this is ron in florida, a democrat. good morning. caller: good morning. thanks for having me. i have a question for scott. why doesn't the fbi release more videos of that insurrection so they can be readily identified by fellow americans. i know there was one fellow outside of tampa that was recognized by his church members and reported. i think everyone that went in that capital violated the law. i think there were a lot of sheep, a lot of followers, but the leaders of those organizations, including some ex

military, ought to do serious jail time in my opinion. thank you. guest: thanks for the question. there are an awful lot of defendants from your home state of florida, i will mention that. we have seen a lot of video. there has been a lot released. the fbi has curated a lot of the images they put on their website. they have curated them with the goal of getting more tips and making it more focused so folks have an easier time seeing who is giving information. the video you have seen so far were from people's phones posted on social media or their surveillance cameras or body cameras worn by police. we had to go to court to get some of those released. they have been used as video exhibits in arguments by prosecutors to hold january 6 defendants. they are showing these violent assaults in video form to convince the judge the defendant needs to stay in jail. we went to court to get those

videos thinking they would be illustrative of what happened january 6. we have shown the videos. that said, there are thousands of hours of other videos we have not seen yet. just the capitol police surveillance video, that is thousands of hours. why hasn't the fbi released more? why hasn't the justice department released more? there could be a logistical issue. if you have 10,000 hours of video to release, you have to watch at first. if you want to watch 10,000 hours of video, it will take you months to watch it. there is a logistical issue. also i suspect -- they say there is some security sensitive information on that video they do not want to give out. they do not want to give a roadmap to the capital complex to the next group who may want to wreak havoc. host: california, this is andy, an independent. caller: thank you for stating

the fact that ashli babbitt was breaking through the glass to get in there. i sure am sorry she lost her life but she clearly broke oath as a military person. secondly, these people who are calling regarding firearms or lethal weapons, why don't you let somebody hit you over the head with a baseball bat? see how that feels. see if you get through that. why don't you let somebody spirit you with an american flag? call yourself a patriot. guest: the list of weapons goes on and on. the when i see most frequently referenced as impactful, not just a police but to the people in the mob is the chemical spray.

it desecrated what i consider some pretty hollow spaces in the capital but also was remarkably impactful to those in the crowd for the worst. there were firearms seized. i get asked a lot about ashli babbitt and the circumstances there. what i like to tell people is there are defendants who were alongside ashli babbitt who are now charged with federal crimes. the man who's accused of smashing that window with a helmet on his hand is facing a federal charge. he is undergoing plea negotiations right now. be aware that those who are juxtaposed next to ashli babbitt are now federal defendants. host: just about a minute or two left. i believe that hearing is getting ready to get underway as we wait for it to start, a question from twitter. don saying are there any major defendants who did not enter the capital that day?

guest: yes there are. there are a number of defendants who were not inside the capitol building itself. at least one of them has made an argument that means perhaps some all of the charges should be dropped. there are violent acts accused outside, attacks on police outside. one minute accused of knocking over an officer, knocking her unconscious. officers say there were crimes. do not fixate on who was inside the beginning -- the building in all cases. host: william in illinois. democrat. caller: i was wondering why you think someone being accountable for the deaths. usually they bring up manslaughter or involuntary manslaughter. guest: there were multiple deaths, including the tragic suicide of the person who responded that day. right now, we know the charges

have been filed. top line of conspiracy and assault. this is a case that seems closer to the starting line than the finishing line. a long way to go. host: caller: i have a question as to whether the official held back the involvement of the capitol police because of some concerns, and early intervention by them might impact on the future agenda to have the capital looked upon for future statehood in any negative connections between the two, trying to avoid that possibility. guest: marilyn statehood is a

big issue around here. the only connection between marilyn statehood and genuine six is a more fervent push -- and january 6 is a more fervent push to get statehood. the capitol police were under the control of donald trump and the delay was consequential january 6. the d.c. stated advocates have put this as an arrow in their quiver as they attempt statehood. host: sumter, south carolina, go ahead with your question. caller: mr. mcfarlane, why isn't anything being said about the one that helped plan the event and he claimed -- host: we are going to have to

ended there and that hearing is just getting underway but we will have scott mcfarlane back again. it sounds like these cases will be going on for a while but th >> c-span is your unfiltered view of government. funded by these television companies and more. ♪ >> it supports c-span as a public service, along with these other television providers. giving you a front row seat to democracy.