“I’m the damn President, take me to the Capitol”


DAccording to a White House employee, the then US President Donald Trump and close confidants were aware in advance of the possible violence on January 6, 2021. Cassidy Hutchinson said at a public hearing by the investigative committee into the Capitol attack on Tuesday that Trump was aware of the guns in the audience before speaking to his supporters that day. Hutchinson worked in the White House for Trump’s then-Chief of Staff Mark Meadows.

“I don’t care if they have guns – they’re not here to hurt me. You can march to the Capitol from here. Take away the damn metal detectors,” Cassidy quoted Trump as saying. She claimed to have heard these words from him shortly before his speech. When a president makes a speech, security personnel require those present to pass through metal detectors.

The committee of inquiry learned from law enforcement reports that participants at the Trump rally had pepper spray, knives, brass knuckles, tasers and blunt objects, said committee vice chair Liz Cheney. According to Hutchinson, Meadows was also informed – but showed almost no reaction. White House Counsel Pat Cipollone urged her on Jan. 3 to lobby Meadows to prevent a protest, Hutchinson said. “We’ll be charged with every crime imaginable if we start this movement,” he reportedly told her.

On January 6, 2021, Trump supporters violently stormed the seat of parliament in the capital Washington. Congress met there to certify Biden’s election victory. Five people were killed in the riots, including a police officer. The attack on the heart of US democracy shook the country. Trump had recently incited his supporters at a rally that his election victory had been stolen.

Trump grabbed his driver’s steering wheel

According to Hutchinson, Trump even wanted to drive to the Capitol himself on January 6, despite massive security concerns. Concerns about possible legal consequences did not let Trump dissuade. When the President was then told on leaving the rally by his top Secret Service bodyguard that he could not go to Congress for security reasons, he was very “angry.”

Citing a conversation with a colleague and the responsible Secret Service official immediately after the incident, Hutchinson described that Trump even tried to grab the driver’s steering wheel in the armored SUV. He is said to have said: “I’m the damn president, take me to the Capitol.” The bodyguard grabbed his arm to keep him away from the steering wheel, she continued. Trump used his free arm to fight back.

Trump had goaded his supporters to march to the Capitol during the January 6 rally in front of the White House. He also said publicly at the time that he too would come. As a result, there were several reports that Trump actually wanted to come to the Capitol – but so far no confirmation from Trump’s leadership circle at the time.

In a fit of rage, lunch flew against the wall

Angered by an interview with the then Attorney General on the 2020 presidential election, the former president is said to have thrown a plate of food against the wall, reports former clerk Cassidy Hutchinson. She left her office in December and went to the White House dining room. Trump had previously summoned her then boss – Chief of Staff Mark Meadows – there.

The valet “signaled me to come in and then pointed to the front of the room, near the mantel by the TV, where I first noticed ketchup dripping down the wall,” she said. A broken porcelain plate lay on the floor. The servant then told her that Trump was so upset about an interview with Attorney General William Barr that he threw his lunch against the wall. Barr said in the interview that there was no evidence of widespread voter fraud.



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