Former White House counsel Pat Cipollone reportedly was not asked to confirm shocking testimony by Cassidy Hutchinson, former aide to White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, during his roughly eight-hour interview with the Jan. 6 Select Committee on Friday, according to CNN and the New York Times.
Sources told CNN that the panel, for example, did not ask Cipollone to corroborate Hutchinson’s claim in which she recalled him telling her the morning of Jan. 6 that they would “get charged with every crime imaginable” if they went to the Capitol as Trump planned to accompany his mob of supporters.
Two people familiar with Cipollone’s actions on Jan. 6 told the Times that he did not recall making that remark to Hutchinson. Those people said the committee was aware prior to its interview with Cipollone that he would not confirm that conversation with Hutchinson if asked about it, according to the Times. People familiar with the questions at Cipollone’s interview with the panel reportedly said he was not asked about Hutchinson’s comments.
Pressed on why Cipollone wasn’t asked about Hutchinson’s claims during an interview on ABC News on Sunday, committee member Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) said the panel will not ask witnesses about what other witnesses have said.
Kinzinger said that “at no point was there any contradiction of what anybody said,” saying that details on Cipollone’s testimony could be included in the panel’s upcoming hearings.
According to CNN, the committee asked Cipollone about his views on Trump going to the Capitol on Jan. 6. The panel’s questioning of Cipollone reportedly focused on his views on the events of Jan. 6 as well as false claims of election fraud, breaking with Trump on his pressure campaign against his then-Vice President Mike Pence and pardons in the aftermath of the deadly Capitol insurrection, three people familiar with Cipollone’s testimony told the Times.
Additionally, Cipollone told the committee that he was not providing legal advice to staff regarding movements on Jan. 6 — a comment that is unrelated to claims made by Hutchinson, CNN reported.
The panel recorded Cipollone on video and clips of his testimony will potentially be included in upcoming hearings, according to the Times. Aides have reportedly begun considering whether to include the key clips in its hearings.
Testimony by Cipollone, a key figure in Trump’s inner circle who refuted the then-President’s attempts to overturn the election results, came days after he reached a deal with the panel to sit for a transcribed interview. Cipollone’s appearance followed the committee’s subpoena for testimony.
The panel’s subpoena to Cipollone followed Hutchinson’s damning testimony late last month. In addition to testifying that Cipollone repeatedly asked her to make sure Trump didn’t go to the Capitol on Jan. 6 because “[w]e’re going to get charged with every crime imaginable if we make that movement happen,” Hutchinson also claimed that Cipollone demanded Meadows take him to see Trump as the violence near the Capitol on Jan. 6 was unfolding. Meadows allegedly replied, “He doesn’t want to do anything, Pat,” Hutchinson testified.
