The House panel investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol has identified a roughly eight-hour gap in official records of then-President Donald Trump’s phone calls as the violence unfolded and his supporters stormed the building, according to a person familiar with the probe.
The gap extends from a little after 11 a.m. to about 7 p.m. on Jan. 6, 2021, and involves White House calls, according to the person, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the ongoing investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on Tuesday on the condition of anonymity. It’s unclear if that gap includes White House cellphones.
It’s widely known that Trump had conversations on Jan. 6 with Republican lawmakers. House investigators are looking at whether the president was communicating during that time through other means, possibly through personal cellphones, or some other type of communication — like a phone passed to him by an aide or a burner phone. The committee has subpoenaed cellphone companies for records and is awaiting data. Trump had no immediate comment Tuesday, but he has previously disparaged the investigation.
The committee also is continuing to receive records from the National Archives and other sources, which could produce additional information.
But the lack of information about Trump’s calls is a frustrating challenge to investigators as they work to create the most comprehensive record yet of the attack, with a particular focus on what the president was doing in the White House as hundreds of his supporters violently beat police, broke into the Capitol and interrupted the certification of Democrat Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential election victory. It also raises questions of whether Trump purposefully circumvented official channels to avoid records.
During the missing hours, Trump went to a rally at the Ellipse, spoke, then watched as the violent mob of his supporters broke into the Capitol, overwhelming police and marauded through the building for hours before they were finally kicked out and the building was declared secure at about 5:30 p.m. More than 700 people have been arrested in the violence.
Trump communicated with at least some lawmakers during the insurrection. He spoke, for example, with House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy, who asked him to call off the mob, according to Republican Rep. Jaime Lynn Herrera Beutler of Washington state, who said McCarthy told her about the call.
She said in a statement, “That’s when, according to McCarthy, the president said, ‘Well, Kevin, I guess these people are more upset about the election than you are.’”
Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama also said he spoke with the president in that time period, telling reporters: “I said, ’Mr. President, they’ve taken the vice president out. They want me to get off the phone. I gotta go.”
That call by Trump apparently first went to Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah, who then handed the phone to Tuberville.
The gap in records was previously reported by the AP. The exact length of time of the gap was first reported by The Washington Post.
The committee is focused on Trump’s actions that day because he waited hours to tell his supporters to stop the violence and leave the Capitol. The panel is also interested in the organization and financing of the rally that morning in Washington, D.C., where Trump told his supporters to “fight like hell.” Among the unanswered questions is how close organizers of the rally coordinated with White House officials.
In many cases, the committee may not need direct confirmation from the White House about Trump’s calls. Lawmakers have already interviewed more than 500 witnesses, including several people in Trump’s inner circle who may be able to fill in those gaps. They are hampered, though, by the former president’s claims of executive privilege over his personal conversations, which have prompted many witnesses to refuse to answer some questions.
Committee members voted unanimously on Monday to hold former Trump advisers Peter Navarro and Dan Scavino in contempt of Congress for their monthslong refusal to comply with subpoenas.
—Mary Clare Jalonick And Colleen Long, The Associated Press
RELATED: Support grows for Capitol riot inquiry after Trump acquittal
RELATED: Gaps in U.S. social fabric wider than ever 12 months after Trump-fuelled Capitol riot
