Former president Donald Trump has now acknowledged that he instructed Secret Service agents to transport him to the US Capitol on January 6. However, his account of events differs significantly from the testimony provided by his former aide.
Cassidy Hutchinson, a former aide to Mark Meadows, the chief of staff of the Trump administration, testified before Congress in June 2022. She revealed that during the incident when a mob of rioters stormed the building, former President Trump insisted that Secret Service agents escort him to the Capitol.
When the agents refused, she claimed that the then-president made a sudden movement to seize the steering wheel of the car.
On Wednesday, Mr. Trump took a break from his ongoing criminal trial in Manhattan and held a rally in Wisconsin. During the event, he recounted his version of the events that took place on that day. He openly admitted that he had indeed requested to be taken to the Capitol on that fateful day.
“I chose to sit in the back,” he explained, before expressing his desire to the Secret Service agents, “I would like to go down there as I see many people walking.”
According to Mr. Trump, the agents insisted that it would be better if the individual refrained from doing so.
Mr. Trump insisted, “Well, I would like to.”
The Secret Service insisted that it would be better if he didn’t.
Mr. Trump proceeded to ridicule Ms. Hutchinson’s assertions that he had “attacked” the agents.
Throughout the car ride, he maintained his insistence that he spoke in a gentle and soft tone.
During his speech in Wisconsin, he addressed the accusation of attacking a Secret Service agent in the front of a car and stated, “Remember the person that said I attacked a Secret Service agent in the front of the car? It’s not my deal. I’m a lover, not a fighter.”
He labeled previous descriptions of the encounter as “crazy stuff,” but he failed to mention her by name.
During her testimony to the January 6 House Select Committee, the White House aide revealed that she had heard Mr. Trump say to Bobby Engel, the head of his Secret Service detail, words along the lines of, “I’m the president, take me up to the Capitol now.”
During her testimony, Ms. Hutchinson recounted the incident to the committee, stating that Mr. Engel responded, “Sir, we have to go back to the West Wing.” She further described how the president reached up towards the front of the vehicle, attempting to grab at the steering wheel.
As the incident unfolded, Mr. Engel intervened by firmly grasping the individual’s arm and urging him to release his grip on the steering wheel. In a resolute tone, he addressed the individual, stating, “Sir, you must remove your hand from the steering wheel. Our destination is the West Wing, not the Capitol.”
According to an unnamed Secret Service agent who was driving the car at the time, the testimony of Ms. Hutchinson was somewhat echoed.
According to a transcript from the January 6 panel, the driver stated that the president was determined to go to the Capitol.
The former president faces allegations of falsifying 34 counts of business records. These records are tied to payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election. The payments were allegedly made in exchange for her silence regarding an alleged affair.
