1/6 Committee Digest

Country First presents the next edition of The Digest to highlight the important work of the 1/6 Committee. Our aim is to make this available to our members within 24 hours after each hearing.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR THE NEXT HEARING:

TENTATIVELY TUESDAY, JULY 12

Don't Miss It: 

• Rep. Kinzinger will appear on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert later tonight (Wednesday) on CBS. Tune in!

Who Gave Testimony:

• Cassidy Hutchinson, Special Assistant to Mark Meadows, Donald Trump’s Chief of Staff

Here are the major developments from the committee: 

Top Trump Aide Reveals Inside Information About Jan. 6th 

Former President Donald Trump was reportedly angry that armed protestors were not allowed to enter the site of his January 6th rally outside the White House with their weapons, saying something to the effect of "they're not here to hurt me."  He even went so far as to affirm their calls to "hang Mike Pence" and told officials to "let my people in" when they began to push towards the Capitol. This and more were included in the testimony of Cassidy Hutchinson, former Special Assistant to Mark Meadows (Trump’s Chief of Staff at the time). 

Hutchison’s testimony depicts Trump as angry, unstable, and prone to violence. Hutchinson testified that Trump lunged to try to gain control of the presidential SUV after being told by security that it wasn’t safe for him to go to the Capitol in the wake of his speech to the protesters. Though it is unclear what Trump’s plans would have been once he made it to the Capitol, Hutchison attested that there were plans for Trump to "go into the House chamber at one point." 

Speaking to his angry tendencies, Hutchinson said after an AP article was published stating the Department of Justice had found no evidence of voter fraud that she and a White House valet cleaned up the Oval Office dining room after Trump threw the contents of the dining table (including his lunch) at the wall. 

During the events of the 6th, Trump tweeted that Pence needed to have the "courage" to stop the certification of the election results. Hutchinson also confirmed that Meadows observed Trump was not worried about the protesters' calls to hang Pence, rather saying that "he deserved it" and that the protesters weren’t "doing anything wrong."

Leading up to the 6th, Hutchinson said she was "scared, and nervous of what could happen" if things took a turn for the worst and that Meadows had warned her that "things might get real, real bad."

She also discussed meetings leading up to the election where Trump was cautioned against enlisting fake electors in swing states. Hutchinson concluded her testimony saying that she is disgusted by the events of January 6th and is struggling to come to terms with them.

Former President Knew Weapons Were Present On January 6th

Anthony Ornato, then Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, told Mark Meadows, then Chief of Staff, that he had informed Trump about the armed crowd before Trump’s Ellipse speech at the January 6th rally, Hutchinson testified. Hutchinson stated that Trump was upset that turnout at the rally was limited by magnetometers (metal detectors) that preventing supporters from attending who did not want their weapons confiscated.

Hutchinson testified she overheard Trump saying something to the effect of, "I don’t f—ing care that they have weapons. They’re not here to hurt me. Take the [metal detectors] away. Let the people in, they can march to the Capitol from here."

After telling his supporters that he would join them at the Capitol after the rally, Trump expected his Secret Service contingent to drive him there. Hutchinson described Trump as furious and out-of-control when the Secret Service denied his demands due to the danger of the situation. Trump then tried to force his limousine to the Capitol, but instead was returned to the West Wing of the White House where he observed the riot on TV. The President didn’t think the crowd was doing anything wrong, according to Hutchinson's testimony.

After the riot began at the Capitol, Hutchinson said Meadows had an eerily nonchalant reaction as he learned details of the escalating violence at the Capitol. "I remember distinctly Mark not looking up from his phone," Hutchinson recalled.

White House Counsel Pat Cipollone told Meadows he needed to talk to Trump and urge him to do something to stop the riot. Hutchinson testified that she overheard Cipollone, after a conversation with Trump, tell Meadows that "we need to do something more, they’re literally calling for the Vice President to be effing hung."

Meadows replied, "You heard him, Pat, he thinks Mike deserves it. He doesn’t think they’re doing anything wrong."

Hutchinson recalled how she felt witnesses the desecration of the Capitol: "It was un-American…We were watching the Capitol building get defaced over a lie."

Hutchinson Recalls Altercation Between Former President and Secret Service

In bombshell testimony given by Cassidy Hutchinson on Tuesday, Hutchinson recalled an incident in which she was informed about former-President Trump lunging at the Secret Service after they refused to drive him to the Capitol following his rally speech on January 6th. According to Hutchinson, the former President was notified that they would not be taking him to the U.S. Capitol building due to safety concerns. Despite being told numerous times that they were going back to the West Wing of the White House, the former President refused to accept their answer. "'I'm the 'effing' president, take me up to the Capitol now!'" Hutchinson testified she was told the President said by those present.

Hutchinson futher testified that after yelling at his security, Trump then lunged for the steering wheel of the SUV, attempting to overtake the vehicle and detour to the U.S. Capitol. He was restrained by his security, only to lunge at Bobby Engel, a Secret Service Special Agent. The former President has denied these allegations. 

White House Counsel Warned Former President About Legal Woes

Former White House Counsel, Pat Cipollone, warned the former President and his team of the possible legal issues with attending the protest-turned-insurrection at the United States Capitol. In testimony given by former Chief of Staff Aide Cassidy Hutchinson, she laid out the mindset of the White House Counsel as they begged the former President not to attend the march to the Capitol. 

"Pat was concerned it would look like we were obstructing justice or obstructing the electoral college count ... that it would look like we were obstructing what was happening on Capitol Hill, and he was also worried that it would look like we were inciting a riot or encouraging a riot to erupt on the Capitol,” Hutchinson said in sworn testimony.

She recalled the President’s insistence on being at the Capitol building with his supporters. Former White House Press Secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, corroborated Ms. Hutchinson, saying "He said he wanted to physically walk with the marchers." However, Cipollone begged the former President’s inner circle to deny him from going to the Capitol, saying: "We're going to get charged with every crime imaginable if we make that movement happen."

Committee Warns Trump’s Camp Against Witness Tampering

While Hutchinson’s brave testimony was the focus of the surprise hearing on Tuesday, the panel issued a stark warning to members of the former President’s inner circle: Stop obstructing justice.

In a closing statement made on Tuesday, Vice Chair Liz Cheney thanked Hutchinson and other Republicans for their bravery; going against the leader of their party and telling the truth. Cheney revealed that those who may be willing to testify are reluctant to do so because they have been contacted by the former President and/or his inner circle. 

The 1/6 Committee presented text messages shared with the committee by witnesses who faced such intimidation. In one instance, an anonymous witness said, "what they said to me is as long as I continue to be a team player, they know that I'm on the team, I'm doing the right thing, I'm protecting who I need to protect, you know, I'll continue to stay in the good graces in Trump world."

Another said, "they have reminded me a couple of times that Trump does read transcripts and just keep that in mind as I proceed through my depositions and interviews with the committee."

Although no names have been released regarding witness tampering, many suspect that was a motivation for the special hearing on Tuesday.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR THE NEXT HEARING:

TENTATIVELY TUESDAY, JULY 12