Status: 12/23/2022 02:42 am
The environment of ex-US President Trump is said to have tried to intimidate a witness of the investigative committee on the Capitol storm. This emerges from newly published testimony minutes of the committee. The witness had heavily incriminated Trump.
A former White House aide, Cassidy Hutchinson, has accused those close to former President Donald Trump of pressuring her before testifying before the investigative committee into the Capitol attack. This emerges from transcripts of Hutchinson’s statements, which the committee has now published.
Hutchinson, who worked for then-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, had been a surprise witness for the panel over the summer. She had testified in part behind closed doors, so her accusation that Trump’s team had tried to influence her only now became known.
“The less you can remember, the better”
Trump’s environment offered her jobs and financial support – even for high legal fees. At the same time, she was urged to downplay her role in the White House and remain loyal: her own lawyer, Stefan Passantino, who served as Trump’s White House ethics counsel, also advised her not to be too forthcoming when testifying before the committee be. “The less you can remember, the better,” Passantino told her.
She had also testified that Trump was aware that violence could erupt when the Capitol was stormed on January 6, 2021. In a confrontation with his Secret Service bodyguards in his limousine, he also tried to grab the steering wheel to be driven to the Capitol. Trump had denied the allegations and publicly insulted Hutchinson.
The investigative committee unanimously recommended this week that investigations be launched against Trump on four counts. It is still unclear whether the US Department of Justice will follow this recommendation.