capitol riot

‘Hand Off the Steering Wheel': Top Video From the 6th Hearing of the Jan. 6 Panel

Cassidy Hutchinson, a former top aide to chief of staff Mark Meadows, testified to the House committee

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A former White House aide on Tuesday described Donald Trump lunging for a Secret Service agent who refused to take him to the Capitol on Jan. 6, trying to grab the steering wheel of the presidential vehicle and throwing plates in anger.

Cassidy Hutchinson, an aide to former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, testified before the House committee investigating the riot at the U.S. Capitol.

The hearing concluded with the committee's vice chair, Republican Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, warning of witness tampering.

"I think most Americans know that attempting to influence witnesses to testify untruthfully presents very serious concerns," she said.

"The Truth Won't Be Buried"

The chair of the committee, Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, accused Trump allies of a coverup.

"Thanks to the courage of certain individuals, the truth won't be buried," he said. "The American people won't left in the dark. Our witness today, Cassidy Hutchinson, has embodied that courage."

Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., chairman of the House select committee on January 6, vowed to continue the committee’s investigation into the U.S. Capitol riot despite perceived efforts by some witnesses to evade testifying. “The same people who drove the former president’s pressure campaign to overturn the election are now trying to coverup the truth about January 6.”

Meadows Predicted Jan. 6 Could Be "Real, Real Bad"

Four days before Jan. 6, Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani told Hutchinson that Trump would go to the Capitol. Giuliani said, "He’s going to look powerful. He’s going to be with the members, He’s going to be with the senators."

He told her to ask Meadows about it.

Cassidy Hutchinson, an aide to former Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows, recounted Mark Meadows telling her after a meeting with Rudy Giuliani on Jan. 2 that things might get “real bad” on Jan. 6.

Aide Says Trump Knew Mob Was Armed

Trump was told that some of the protesters in the crowd outside the White House had weapons, Hutchinson testified.

Still he wanted magnetometers near the White House to be taken down before he addressed a “Stop the Steal” rally, she testified.

“They’re not here to hurt me," he said.

He told officials to “let my people in” and march to the Capitol, Hutchinson said.

Cassidy Hutchinson, an aide to former chief of staff Mark Meadows, recounted hearing President Donald Trump express anger over security blocking demonstrators with weapons from entering the Jan. 6 rally.

White House Counsel Warned of Criminal Charges

The White House counsel, Pat Cipollone, had serious legal concerns about Trump going to the Capitol, Hutchinson said.

"We're going to get charged with every crime imaginable," Cipollone said on Jan. 6, she said. He was focused on accusations of obstructing justice and defrauding the electoral count.

Cassidy Hutchinson, former senior aide to chief of staff Mark Meadows, testified Tuesday that White House counsel Pat Cipollone had warned against Trump’s plan to march to the Capitol. “We have serious legal concerns.”

Trump Grabbed Steering Wheel, Aide Says

When special agent Robert Engel told Trump he could not go to the Capitol after his Jan. 6 rally, the former president reached for the steering wheel of the presidential vehicle, Hutchinson said. Then he lunged for the agent, she said.

Cassidy Hutchinson, former senior aide to chief of staff Mark Meadows, recounted what she was told happened in the Presidential Limo between an irate President Donald Trump and secret service who would not take him to the Capitol after his speech on Jan. 6.

Trump Threw Plates, Aide Testifies

The former president was enraged after learning that former Attorney General William Barr told The Associated Press there was no evidence of election fraud. Hutchinson said. He shattered a plate and left ketchup dripping down the wall.

Cassidy Hutchinson, former senior aide to chief of staff Mark Meadows, testified Tuesday that former President Donald Trump had thrown a plate at a White House wall after former Attorney General Bill Barr spoke out against claims of election fraud. “There was ketchup dripping down the wall and there was a shattered porcelain plate on the floor.”

"Hang Mike Pence"

Trump backed calls by his supporters to "Hang Mike Pence," Hutchinson said. Hutchinson said Meadows told her that Trump “thinks Mike deserves it."

Cassidy Hutchinson recounted former chief of staff Mark Meadows telling White House counsel Pat Cipollone that President Donald Trump thought the vice president “deserved” the “Hang Mike Pence” chants from the rioters.

Preventing Cabinet From Invoking 25th Amendment

Hutchinson said Trump was persuaded to make a speech to the country the day after the Capitol riot to head off the possibility of his cabinet invoking the 25th Amendment and to protect his legacy.

Cassidy Hutchinson, former senior aide to chief of staff Mark Meadows, testified Tuesday that President Donald Trump did not want to make a speech to the nation the day after the Capitol riot, but was persuaded to do so after talk of members of the cabinet possibly invoking the 25th Amendment and to protect his legacy.

Reports of Witness Intimidation

Cheney presented messages that witnesses had received, a reminder that Trump read transcripts and an exhortation to remain a team player. "And they have reminded me a couple of times that Trump does read transcripts and just to keep that in mind as I proceeded through my depositions and interviews with the committee," one read.

House select committee vice chair Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyoming, disclosed Tuesday that committee members will be deciding how to move forward after reports of Trump allies attempting to sway witness testimony about the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
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