Never-before-seen footage, obtained exclusively by CNN, shows in startling new detail how congressional leaders fled the US Capitol on January 6 and turned a nearby military base into a command center, where they frantically coordinated with vice -President Mike Pence and Trump. Cabinet members to quell the insurgency and finish certifying the 2020 elections.
The Jan. 6 select committee played excerpts from the footage during its public hearing on Thursday, but CNN obtained about an hour of additional material that was not presented by the panel.
Congressional leaders have been considering, far more seriously than previously thought, reconvening the Electoral College debates in Fort McNair, footage obtained by CNN reveals. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi spoke with Pence about the “backup plan,” and officials tried to figure out how they would transport hundreds of lawmakers to the Army base.
The extensive raw footage sheds a devastating light on then-President Donald Trump’s inaction during the riot. Lawmakers are seen working around Trump to get all the help they could get — from the National Guard, federal agencies and local police departments — to defeat the mob he incited.
The footage was captured by Alexandra Pelosi, documentary filmmaker and daughter of the Democratic House Speaker. The filmmaker provided some of her behind-the-scenes footage to the Jan. 6 House Select Committee investigating the insurgency.
In a dramatic scene, then-Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer yelled at Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy after hearing a rumor that Trump stopped the DC National Guard from rushing to Capitol.
“I wish I knew a good fucking reason why it was turned down,” Schumer said. “Please, the entire Capitol is ransacked. There’s a picture of someone sitting in the Senate chair. We’ve all been evacuated. There’s been gunfire. We need a component full National Guard now.”
McCarthy then assures Schumer that there has been no withdrawal order for the National Guard.
And in another shocking moment, Schumer and Pelosi are seen talking to Acting Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen. In an impassioned phone call, Schumer told Rosen that federal authorities should “make arrests, starting now,” but Rosen offered only a half-hearted, noncommittal response.
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