The text from Greene (R-Ga.), revealed this week, brought to the fore the chorus of Republicans who were publicly and privately advocating for Trump to try to use the military and defense apparatus of the U.S. government to strong-arm his way past an electoral defeat. Now, discussions involving the Trump White House about using emergency powers have become an important — but little-known — part of the House Jan. 6 committee’s investigation of the 2021 attack on the Capitol…

Interviews with committee members and a review of the panel’s information requests reveals a focus on emergency powers that were being considered by Trump and his allies in several categories: invoking the Insurrection Act, declaring martial law, using presidential powers to justify seizing assets of voting-machine companies, and using the military to require a rerun of the election.

“Trump’s invocation of these emergency powers would have been unprecedented in all of American history,” said J. Michael Luttig, a conservative lawyer and former appeals court judge…

Among the records the panel is examining are memos authored and circulated by Trump allies that centered on using government powers to seize voting machines, as well as text messages showing lawmakers such as Greene and Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) directly lobbying Meadows to invoke extraordinary powers on the basis of false conspiracy claims. As it continues to examine and collect such evidence, the House committee is trying to determine just how seriously Trump considered these proposals, according to a member of the panel.