Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif) a member of the January 6 House select committee said former Trump White House counsel Pat Cipollone did not contradict the testimony of other witnesses during his meeting with the committee on Friday.
“Mr. Cipollone did appear voluntarily and answer a whole variety of questions. He did not contradict the testimony of other witnesses. And I think we did learn a few things, which we will be rolling out in the hearings to come,” Lofgren told CNN. “So I think it was a, you know, a grueling day for all involved, Mr. Cipollone and the staff and the members, but it was well worth it.”
Lofgren’s comments come as Donald Trump and his allies are trying to undermine the credibility of the committee’s star witness former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson following her bombshell testimony.
Hutchinson provided the committee with details about Trump’s actions behind the scenes in the days leading up to Jan. 6 and on the day of the riot. She told the committee that Trump knew his supporters were armed that day and that he lunged at a Secret Service agent while grabbing the steering wheel of the presidential limousine when he was told by his Secret Service detail that he would not be going to the Capitol. She also told the committee that former chief of staff Mark Meadows and Rudy Giuliani sought pardons from Trump after the riot.
Members of the secret service disputed Hutchinson’s claim that the former president lunged at an agent and said they are willing to testify under oath. However, secret service sources told CNN that stories similar to the incident described by Hutchinson during her testimony have been circulating since last year, including the story about Trump lunging at an agent.
Asked if the public can assume that Cipollone confirmed Hutchinson’s testimony, Lofgren responded: “Not contradicting is not the same as confirming.”
“He could say so and so was wrong, which he did not say,” she added. “There were things that he might not be present for, or, in some cases, couldn’t recall with precision. My sense was that he, as I say, he did appear voluntarily. I think he was candid with the committee. He was careful in his answers, and I believe that he was honest in his answers.”
