Jan. 6 hearing witness: Irate Trump grabbed wheel, demanded to go to Capitol

Cassidy Hutchinson recalled a shocking story of Trump's anger on Jan. 6 after being told he could not go to the Capitol to meet supporters following his "Save America" rally on the Ellipse -- leading to Trump physically assaulting his security detail on the way back to the White House.

Hutchinson recalled the conversation she had back at the White House just after the rally with Bobby Engel, part of Trump's security detail, who was "sitting in the chair, looking somewhat discombobulated," and Tony Ornato.

"As the president had gotten into the vehicle with Bobby, he thought they were going out of the Capitol and when Bobby had relayed to him were not, 'You don't have the access to do it, is not secure, we're going back to the West Wing.' The president had a very strong, very angry response to that," she recalled.

"Tony described him as being irate. The president said something to the effect of, 'I'm the effing president, take me up to the Capitol now' -- to which Bobby responded, 'Sir, we have to go back to the West Wing.' The president reached up towards the front of the vehicle to grab at the steering wheel. Mr. Engel grabbed his arm, said, 'Sir, you need to take your hand off the steering wheel. We're going back to the West Wing. We're not going to the Capitol.'"

"Mr. Trump used his free hand to lunge towards Bobby Engel and when Mr. Ornato recounted the story to me, he motions towards his clavicle," she said.

Hutchinson testified about the concerns some White House staff had about President Trump wanting to go to the Capitol with his supporters on Jan. 6. At one point that morning, Hutchinson said, then-White House counsel Pat Cipollone told her to make sure that it didn't happen.

"We're going to get charged with every crime imaginable if we go up to the Capitol," Hutchinson said Cipollone told her.

Crimes they were concerned about, she said, included defrauding the electoral count and obstructing justice.

The White House legal team was also concerned about aspects of Trump's remarks at the Ellipse, Hutchinson testified, and urged speechwriters not to include language about marching to the Capitol.

Hutchinson said there were "many discussions" the morning of Jan. 6 about the rhetoric Trump would use at the speech that ultimately preceded the riot.

Hutchinson testified that Eric Herschmann, a lawyer for Trump, said it would be "foolish to include language that had been included at the president's request, which had lines along, to the effect of 'fight for Trump, we're going to march to the Capitol, I'll be there with you, fight for me, fight for what we're doing, fight for the movement,' things about the vice president at the time too."

"Both Mr. Herschmann and White House counsel's office were urging the speechwriters to not include that language for legal concerns and also for the optics of what it could portray the president wanting to do that day," Hutchinson said.

Trump at his speech ultimately said, "So let's walk down Pennsylvania Avenue" to give "weak" Republicans the "pride and boldness that they need to take back our country."

Cassidy Hutchinson recalled how Trump was "furious" with the crowd size of his "Save America" rally on the Ellipse on Jan. 6 and with aides who didn't want to let in individuals in who had weapons, which officials said ranged from AR-15-style rifles to bear spray.

"I was in the vicinity of a conversation where I heard the president say, "'I don't care that they have weapons. They are not here to hurt me. Take the effing mags away. Let my people in,'" she recalled. "'They can march to the Capitol after the rally is over.'"

Vice chair Liz Cheney asked Americans to "reflect on that for a moment" and remember what Trump called on the crowd to do, knowing they were equipped with weapons and body armor.