Topline
Former White House Counsel Pat Cipollone told the January 6 committee he did not believe former President Donald Trump’s claims of widespread fraud in the 2020 election and privately hoped Trump would concede.
Pat Cipollone, the former White House counsel under President Donald Trump, arrives at an interview … [+]
Key Facts
In highly anticipated videotaped testimony that the committee investigating the attack on the U.S. Capitol made public Tuesday, Cipollone said that former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows had assured him on multiple occasions that Trump would concede and make a “graceful exit.”
He also said he advised against several bizarre ideas Trump had floated after the 2020 election, such as ordering the seizure of voting machines, which Cipollone said was a “terrible idea” based on “no legal authority.”
Cipollone testified that he “vehemently opposed” Trump’s proposal to appoint Sidney Powell, an attorney who pushed conspiracy theories around the election, as special counsel to investigate voter fraud.
Key Background
Cipollone testified before the committee on Friday for eight hours after receiving a subpoena. The committee had long sought his testimony due to his close dealings with Trump and other White House officials on January 6, along with his status as one of Trump’s top legal advisors. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), who serves on the committee, said Tuesday Cipollone corroborated “almost everything that we’ve learned from the prior hearings” in his testimony.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicholasreimann/2022/07/12/jan-6-hearings-cippolone-wanted-trump-to-concede-election/