Topline
Members of former Vice President Mike Pence’s Secret Service detail feared for their lives so much during the January 6 riot that they put in calls over their radios to ask colleagues to say goodbye to their families, a White House security official said during Thursday’s House January 6 committee hearing.
Then-Vice President Mike Pence stands to officiate with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., … [+]
Key Facts
The January 6 committee played testimony from the official, whose name was withheld due to fear of retribution, who recalled a “lot of yelling” and “disturbing” messages relayed over the radio by Pence’s detail as they worked out a plan for him to evade rioters.
The committee also played radio communications revealing Pence’s team was working on an escape plan as police fired tear gas to stymie rioters inside the Capitol, with one agent saying: “If we lose any time, we may lose the ability to leave.”
Many of the rioters breached the Capitol while chanting “hang Mike Pence,” and former White House counsel Pat Cipollone testified in a videotaped deposition that he thought the chants were “terrible” and “outrageous.”
Cipollone’s attorney asserted executive privilege when the committee inquired about former President Donald Trump’s response.
Key Background
Thursday night’s hearing is the eighth and final scheduled hearing from the January 6 committee this summer. It is largely focused on the 187 minutes between the conclusion of Trump’s speech at the Ellipse just before the start of the riot and his call for rioters to go home. The committee announced further hearings will take place in September.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicholasreimann/2022/07/21/jan-6-hearings-pences-security-staff-wanted-to-say-goodbye-to-families-during-riot-fearing-for-their-lives-official-says/