U.S. House Republicans released a report on Monday that they said contradicted sensational committee testimony on January 6, in which a former aide to Donald Trump said he was told that as Congress As the attack unfolded, the then-President was so eager to join his supporters at the Capitol that he tried to stop him by grabbing the steering wheel of his car.
“…the testimony of four White House staffers directly contradicted the statements made by Cassidy Hutchinson and the Select Committee in the final report,” the House Management Oversight Subcommittee wrote in its report on the committee’s Jan. 6 investigation. Look for suspected bias or misconduct. .
“No White House employee has confirmed Hutchinson’s sensational story about President Trump lunging at the wheel of the Beast,” the report said, referring to the popular name for the car carrying the president.
“Some witnesses did describe the president’s mood after the Ellipse speech. It’s unlikely that other White House employees heard about the president’s mood in the SUV after the Ellipse speech, but not what Hutchinson claimed, the White House deputy staff for operations said. President Anthony Onato tells the sensational story of her return to the White House on January 6.”
Hutchinson is Trump’s former aide and his final chief of staff, Mark Meadows. testify January 6 Committee privately and publicly.
Her public testimony about Trump’s anger over his inability to overturn Joe Biden’s defeat made her a star witness, with some comparing her to White House counsel John Dean, whose testimony shaped the case. Chad Nickerson’s fate in the Watergate scandal.
In a particularly memorable testimony, Hutchinson described what Onato told her about Trump’s reaction, after telling supporters to “fight like hell” and being told he couldn’t go to the Capitol with them to try to stop the certification of the election. .
According to Hutchinson, Onato explain As Trump angrily stormed toward the wheel, an agent grabbed his arm and said, “Sir, you need to take your hands off the wheel. We’re going back to the West Wing. We’re not going to the Capitol.”
Hutchinson said she was told “Trump then lunged at Bobby Engel with his free hand.” [an agent] When Mr. Onato told me this story, he pointed to his collarbone”.
Hutchinson, when questioned by anti-Trump Republican Liz Cheney, the vice chairwoman of the Jan. 6 committee, said Engel did not dispute that statement. Reports soon emerged that Engel had indeed disputed this and wanted to testify under oath.
In a transcript released Monday, the unnamed agent who drove Trump said: “The president insisted on going to the Capitol. It was clear to me that he wanted to go to the Capitol.”
“He didn’t scream at Mr. Engel. He didn’t scream at me. Of course, his voice was raised, but it didn’t look to me like he was angry — [he] Sure… didn’t look as annoyed or excited as he did on the way to the oval. “The Ellipse is the area where Trump speaks to supporters near the White House.
The driver added, “I didn’t see him arrive. He never grabbed the steering wheel. You know, I didn’t see him lunge over and try to get into the front seat at all. You know, the most noticeable thing was the annoyance in his voice. , rather than his physical presence.”
The committee did not release the transcript on January 6, citing security concerns. The transcript was eventually edited and published.
On Monday, The New York Times reported that former aides to the Jan. 6 committee said its final report included details of interviews with drivers and did not attempt to cover up the facts.
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The final report states: “The committee has now obtained evidence from multiple sources of ‘intense interactions’ in the SUV. The vast majority of witnesses who testified before the select committee on this topic included multiple Secret Service agents, a member of the Metropolitan Police, and and national security and military officials in the White House, all described President Trump’s actions as “angry,” ‘angry,’ ‘persistent,’ ‘profane’ and ‘intense.'”
It added: “It is difficult to squarely reconcile the accounts of the several witnesses who provided information with what we heard from Engel and Onato. But the main factual point here is clear and indisputable: President Trump clearly and asked multiple times to be taken to the Capitol. He was persistent and angry and continued to push for a march to the Capitol even after returning to the White House.”
On Monday, Republican Select Committee Chairman Barry Loudermilk of Georgia said the report showed “first-hand testimony that directly contradicts Cassidy Hutchinson’s story and facts.” [January 6] Narrative of the Committee. Even though the committee had this crucial information, they still promoted Ms Hutchinson’s third-hand version of events. “
Hutchinson, 27, published a memoir and became a well-known figure on the anti-Trump right. On Monday, her attorneys re-released a letter first sent to Loudermilk in January.
“Since Ms. Hutchinson changed attorneys,” the letter said of her decision to stop using Trump-provided counsel, “she has and will continue to tell the truth.
“While others… would not speak to the Special Committee, Ms. Hutchinson and many other witnesses bravely came forward. However, she now finds herself being interviewed by you and your subcommittee regarding her testimony and what may have been the case against Trump. Mr. Pugh on matters that are the subject of ongoing criminal proceedings.”
Trump, 77, is the Republican nominee to face Biden again in the fall. He still faces 91 criminal charges, 17 of which involve attempts to subvert the election. Although Trump was impeached for inciting the insurrection, Senate Republicans guaranteed his innocence.
Her lawyer said Hutchinson would not “give in to pressure from those trying to silence her.”
