January 6 panel lays out Donald Trump’s ‘187 minutes of inaction’ when he watched TV in dining room
- Congressional hearing offers most detailed focus yet on Donald Trump’s actions as mob attacked US Capitol
- Hearing was the eighth by the House of Representatives Select Committee. Another round will begin in September
Then-US President Donald Trump did not leave his personal dining room for most of the time a violent mob raged at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, the House committee investigating the insurrection said in its prime-time hearing on Thursday.
“He refused to defend our nation and our Constitution. He refused to do what every president must,” the Republican vice chair of the committee, said.
Focusing on Trump’s inaction, the panel has provided a moment-by-moment accounting of the 187 minutes between when the attack on the US Capitol began and when the president released a video on Twitter urging his supporters to withdraw.
Trump became aware of the violent mob immediately after his speech at the Ellipse near the White House, said Congresswoman Elaine Luria, a member of the panel made up of seven Democrats and two Republicans.
“Within 15 minutes of leaving the stage, President Trump knew that the Capitol was besieged and under attack,” Luria said.
Instead of taking action, Trump walked into his private dining room next to the Oval Office and watched coverage of the attack on Fox News for two hours, and made calls to senators and his lawyer Rudy Giuliani.