By Aaron Miller-
Investigators have found an eight-hour gap in Donald Trump’s official phone records as thousands of his supporters stormed the US Capitol, according to a person familiar with the inquiry.
The multiple conversations the former president had with several Republican politicians on the day of the insurrection in January 2021, has led investigators probing Trump’s role to establish the reasons for the gap. During the unaccounted hours, Mr Trump spoke at a rally near the White House before watching as the violent mob broke into the US Capitol.
The gap in Trump’s official phone records extends from shortly after 11am to around 7pm local time, the source told the Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
The bipartisan congressional committee investigating the attack endured a lengthy legal battle to obtain the presidential records, which could shed light on the activity of the president and his closest aides on the day in question.
The logs show the president contacting at least eight people in the morning , including former White House advisor Steve Bannon and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, both of whom were organizing attempts to overturn Mr Trump’s presidential defeat, according to records obtained by CBS News, the the Washington Post.
The committee is particularly interested in Mr Trump’s actions that day because he waited hours to tell his supporters to stop the violence and leave the Capitol.
The panel is also interested in the organization and financing of a rally that morning where Mr Trump told his supporters to “fight like hell”.
Among the unanswered questions is how closely organizers of the rally coordinated with White House officials.
Thousands of protesters stormed the US Capitol building
A federal judge on Monday ruled that the congressional committee could have access to dozens of emails sent to Mr Trump by John Eastman, a California law professor who was researching ways the then-president could block Mr Biden’s victory certification.
However, the logs fail to show a reported late morning phone call between Mr Trump and Vice-President Mike Pence, where the former vice president again refused the president’s increasingly angry demands to delay the certification of Joe Biden’s presidential victory.
It could be an indication that the president was communicating through unofficial channels, such as an aide’s device or an undisclosed “burner” personal mobile phone.
Mr Trump addressed a rally of his supporters Image: AP
The gap may raise concerns that records of presidential contacts during key moments – as US Capitol police were in a melee with Trump supporters and Secret Service officers were evacuating Mr Pence from the Senate chamber – have been withheld or destroyed.
As the congressional investigation into the 6 January attack approaches its ninth month, a growing number of documents obtained by the committee are finding their way into the public eye.
It also records calls with 11 people in the evening, but also documents no contacts from 11:17 am to 18:45 pm local time (16:17 to 23:45 BST).
Supporters of Trump who stormed the building as a joint session of Congress in January 2021 , as they were was sitting to ratify Joe Biden’s election as president had earlier that day been inspired by a speech given by Donald Trump in which he told them that if they didn’t act, they wouldn’t have a country anymore. Trump also told them that former deputy president, Mike Pence, did not have the courage to do what was right.
A judge ruled earlier this week that the former president “more likely than not” committed a crime when he tried to obstruct Congress and overturn his election defeat.
Donald Trump was implored by White House Officials to say something to stop the demonstrations. He eventually told them to go home, adding that ”you are very special”, and ”we love you”.
House select committee investigators are looking into whether Mr Trump was communicating through other means during this period, possibly through personal mobile phones, burner phones or some other type of communication, such as a phone passed to him by an aide.
A burner phone is a cheap pre-paid device that is typically destroyed after use. They are often used by criminals. The House panel’s findings raise questions over whether Mr Trump purposefully circumvented official channels to avoid creating records.
The committee has subpoenaed mobile phone companies for records and is awaiting data. The panel is also receiving records from the National Archives and other sources, which could produce additional information.
A judge ruled earlier this week that the former president “more likely than not” committed a crime when he tried to obstruct Congress and overturn his election defeat.