According to former adviser Kellyanne Conway, Donald Trump is afraid of his wife Melania. She was the only person who could have persuaded him to intervene on the day of the Capitol storm.
More and more details are coming to light about the storming of the US Capitol: The House of Representatives investigative committee has now published the transcript of the questioning of Donald Trump’s former adviser Kellyanne Conway. In her testimony, Conway revealed that there was only one person who could have reasoned with Trump on January 6, 2021: the former First Lady. But Melania Trump knew nothing about the violence at the Capitol.
In her Nov. 28 testimony, Conway said of Donald Trump, “He listens to many of us, but there’s only one person he’s scared of, Melania Trump.” That’s why Conway texted the First Lady on the day of the Capitol storm to speak to her husband so he could calm his followers. But Melania Trump did not respond to her message.
Trump supporters stormed the seat of parliament in Washington on January 6, 2021. Congress met there to formally confirm the election victory of Trump’s democratic challenger Joe Biden. Trump had previously incited his supporters in a speech that he had been deprived of a victory by massive election fraud. Five people died as a result of the riots.
What did Trump really know?
Many questions had been raised about Melania Trump’s role in the incident. It is unclear how much she knew about what happened that day. Trump’s former chief of staff Stephanie Grisham said in the summer of 2021 that she had suggested via text message that the mob tweet to dissuade the violence. However, Melania Trump would have denied this in a text response to her.
The first lady herself said she was “unaware” of the unrest that day. The reason: In her role as First Lady, she was busy photographing a carpet in the White House. Grisham did not inform her about the incident that day. “If I had been fully informed about all the details, I would of course have immediately denounced the violence at the Capitol,” Trump said in an interview with US broadcaster Fox News. It’s a claim that’s hardly consistent with what Grisham said.
Conway defends Trump
Conway, on the other hand, defended Trump in her statement, as can be seen from the transcript that has now been published. Trump initially knew nothing about what was happening because she did not have her mobile phone with her when she was working in the White House rooms. “I’m hurt that no one ran in to call the first lady and tell her that she and her teenage son are in danger,” Conway said. “So she got in touch with me when she came out and saw what was going on.”
Shortly before Christmas, the investigative committee presented its final report, in which Donald Trump was given primary responsibility for the Capitol attack. The panel advised, among other things, to exclude Trump from another presidency. In its most recent public hearing, the panel also recommended criminal prosecution of Trump on four counts.