Hutchinson, who worked for Donald Trump’s last chief of staff, Mark Meadows, told an enthusiastic audience on Tuesday that Trump was trying to overcome the details of his Secret Service and command the presidential SUV in an attempt to unite with the of his supporters seeking to overturn the election results. among other shocking and unknown jokes. Some of the most frightening reports, however, have been refuted by those involved – as Trump allies initially accused the stories of being mainly “rumors” based on what Hutchinson told her and not on what she personally observed. “Lady. However, key areas of disagreement emerge, which can ultimately be clarified by witnesses with first-hand information at future hearings. Cassidy Hutchinson, a former aide to White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, defended her allegations about Trump’s alleged savage behavior on January 6, 2021. Andrew Harnik-Pool / Getty Images
Allegation: Trump grabbed the wheel of the SUV and asked for an agent
The first allegation that he faced substantial repulsion also drew the most immediate attention: that an “outraged” Trump grabbed the steering wheel of the SUV he was riding in and then fell to intelligence agent Robert “Bobby” Engel when Engel told him he could not unite his thousands of admirers who marched to the Capitol. “I am the president! Take me to the Capitol now! ” Trump reportedly shouted. Hutchinson said she was informed of the incident by Anthony Ornato, who was the White House Deputy Chief of Staff that day. She said Engel was in the room when Ornato told her about the collision shortly after it happened and that the agent did not refute the story. The video released by the House Election Committee shows former President Donald Trump talking to his chief of staff Mark Mendows before a rally on January 6, 2021. The House Election Committee through the AP But shortly after it was filed, Secret Service sources informed most major news agencies that both Engel and the SUV driver had challenged the bill and would be willing to testify under oath. An unnamed official told CNN that Ornato, who still works for the Secret Service, even denied transferring the bill to Hutchinson. Responding to Hutchinson’s testimony, Anthony Guglielmi, the intelligence chief, said in a statement: “The Secret Service has been cooperating fully with the selected committee since its inception in the spring of 2021 and we will continue to do so by responding formally to the committee. with new allegations that emerged in yesterday’s deposition “. Trump claimed that Hutsinson’s “fake story that I tried to steer the wheel of a White House limousine to drive her to the Capitol” was “sick” and fraudulent, as was the unelected committee itself – it would not even be possible to become something so ridiculous “. Former President Donald Trump has categorically denied Cassidy Hutchinson’s allegations.AP Photo / Jacquelyn Martin, Archive
Allegation: Trump broke his meal on the wall
Hutchinson was told live that he helped clean ketchup off the wall of a West Wing dining room after Trump allegedly slapped his lunch plate on him in anger at Attorney General Bill Barr’s December 1, 2020 interview with the Associated Press. the election of the president. allegations of fraud. “There was ketchup dripping on the wall and a broken porcelain plate on the floor,” he testified. “So I grabbed a towel and started wiping the ketchup off the wall to help the valet get out.” Hutchinson said Trump’s servant – a military official – told her that the 45th president had broken his lunch out of frustration with Bar and that he had previously made a fuss by tearing tablecloths to cause food to fall to the ground. Cassidy Hutchinson cited White House Deputy Chief of Staff Anthony Ornato as the source of Donald Trump’s alleged altercation with a Secret Service agent. REUTERS / Tom Brenner It is not clear if the valet would be available to the committee, but Trump denied the bill. “Her story that I threw food is also false; and why should she clean it, I almost did not know what it was?” said Trump.
Allegation: Hutchinson made a possible Trump statement during the uprising
Hutchinson testified that as the rioters looted the Capitol and sent officials to flee, she wrote possible remarks in which Trump would urge the rioters to go home.
He said “this is my manuscript” as the note was presented as evidence.
“Anyone who entered the Capitol illegally without proper authority should leave immediately,” the note said. The word “illegal” was later deleted.
Cassidy Hutchinson said she wrote comments about former President Donald Trump on January 6, 2021.AP Photo / Jose Luis Magana, Archive
Hutchinson testified that Meadows dictated the statement, but that then-White House attorney Eric Hersman told her to change “illegally” to “without proper authority.”
Herschmann claimed Tuesday night that he did write the note.
“The handwritten note filed by Cassidy Hutchinson was actually written by Eric Herschmann on January 6, 2021,” a Herschmann spokeswoman told ABC News.
Allegation: Trump wanted supporters with weapons to be allowed to gather
Trump was reportedly outraged when metal detectors reduced the size of the “Stop The Steal” crowd in Ellipse shortly before the uprising – which led him to demand the removal of metal detectors because protesters allegedly noticed they were carrying semi-automatic AR 15. it is not going to hurt him. “I was close to a conversation where I heard the president say something that resulted: ‘I do not care that they have weapons. They are not here to hurt me. “Take the magic away,” Hutchinson said. Trump has denied it and the allegation has not yet been confirmed by additional witnesses. “I never complained about the crowd, it was huge. I did not want or ask for space for people with weapons to watch my speech. Who would ever want that? Not me! “Trump wrote in a response posted on his social network Truth Social. “Besides, no weapons were found or imported into the Capitol. So where were all these weapons? But, unfortunately, a gun was used on Ashli Babbitt, at no cost to the one who used it! “ Ashli Babbitt was shot and killed inside the Capitol. Maryland MVA / Courtesy of Calvert County Sheriff’s Office
Claim: Meadows would not “get out of it” during the riots
Hutchinson’s testimony portrayed Meadows as strangely cut off from the events of January 6, often absorbed by his phone as chaos swirled around him. As pro-Trump riots approached the Capitol, Hutchinson recalled asking Mendous, “Did you talk to the President?” to which Meadows reportedly replied: “No, he wants to be alone now,” while, as Hutchinson told the committee, “he is still looking at his phone.” “I remember thinking at the time, ‘Mark needs to get out of this and I don’t know how to get him out of this, but he needs to care,’” Hutchinson said. Ben Williamson, Meadows’s former top aide, responded angrily to a text message on NBC News, writing: “I’ve been working for Mark Meadows for 7 years – any proposal he didn’t care about is ridiculous. And if the committee really wanted answers to that question, they could have played my interview where I described to them how Meadows acted immediately when I told him about the initial violence at the Capitol that day. “They seem to be more interested in rumors, speculation and speculation as a means of tarnishing people, and it is obvious why.” Meadows refused to respond to a committee summons, citing an executive privilege. However, the former North Carolina MP submitted nearly 9,000 pages of emails and text messages to the committee before abruptly ending contact in early December. Earlier this month, the Justice Department told the commission it would not accuse Meadows or another Trump aide, Dan Scavino, of contempt of Congress over contempt of summons.
