WASHINGTON—The House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol said former President Donald Trump’s tweets and public comments spurred far-right groups to violence as he made a last-ditch effort to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s election win.
Committee members said Mr. Trump rallied supporters to Washington that day as he was facing a narrowing set of options to hold on to the presidency, after legal challenges failed and other ideas, such as seizing voting machines, were rejected by administration officials. In his speech at the Ellipse, Mr. Trump urged the crowd to march to the Capitol as he implored then-Vice President Mike Pence and Republican lawmakers to overturn the election result.