Media

‘Corroboration For That Story Would Be Good’: Tapper Presses Rep. Raskin On New Allegations Against Trump

[Screenshot/Rumble/CNN]

Nicole Silverio Media Reporter
Font Size:

CNN’s Jake Tapper pressed Democratic Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin on Tuesday about corroborating new allegations made by former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson against former President Donald Trump.

Hutchinson, a former aide to former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, testified that Trump allegedly said he did not care that “Stop the Steal” rally protesters had weapons, including AR-15s and knives. Raskin, a member of the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, said the testimony is essential to their investigation given that the former president allegedly did not care about the potential harm that could be done.

“Does that establish intent of a crime? I’ve seen legal commentators say ‘that’s a smoking gun,'” Tapper said.

“I can certainly see prosecutors looking at that and if they’re making charges of seditious conspiracy, which is conspiracy to overthrow or put down the government of the United States, that that crowd or people who are ringleaders in that crowd could be charged with seditious conspiracy and some of them have been and several have already pled guilty to that charge,” Raskin said.

Tapper then played footage of Hutchinson being informed by two Secret Service agents, Tony Ornato and Robert Engel, that Trump allegedly reached for the steering wheel of the presidential limousine to veer toward the Capitol, then allegedly lunged his hand and grabbed Engel’s clavicle. The CNN host asked the representative if he has “corroborating evidence” that the report is valid. (RELATED: Jamie Raskin Wants To Use The Jan. 6 Committee To Blow Up The Electoral College)

“The story that she told is the evidence that I’m aware of,” Raskin said. “And I have not seen anything to contradict it and then, of course, it’s corroborated by everything else we know about Donald Trump’s eagerness to not just incite this march and assemble the march and form the march and exhort the people in the march, but also to participate in it.”

“Right, I get it,” Tapper interjected. “But, what I’m saying is your committee interviewed Tony Ornato and Steven Engel who supposedly told her the story. And I don’t doubt her. I’m sure Ornato told her the story. But your committee interviewed them. Did you ask about that story? It is a shocking story.”

Raskin said he had no involvement or knowledge about Ornato or Engel’s testimonies, but has no evidence that contradicts Hutchinson’s report.

“Right, but you would agree that that story would be stronger if you had corroborating evidence from the individuals who were actually in the presidential limo,” Tapper said. “It is just an incredibly damning and dramatic story, I would just add as a journalist and as an American, appreciate more corroboration for the story for as of now it is hear-say.”

Raskin said the committee is not charging anyone with a particular offense and is assembling information and accounts of the Jan. 6 riot. He then said they have a “very clear story” of Trump attempting to overthrow the 2020 presidential election.

“Absolutely, over months and months,” Tapper agreed. “I’m just saying that corroboration for that story would be good.”

PREMIUM ARTICLE: Subscribe To Keep Reading

Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!

Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!
Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!

Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!
Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!

Sign Up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!
Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!
Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!
BENEFITS READERS PASS PATRIOTS FOUNDERS
Daily and Breaking Newsletters
Daily Caller Shows
Ad Free Experience
Exclusive Articles
Custom Newsletters
Editor Daily Rundown
Behind The Scenes Coverage
Award Winning Documentaries
Patriot War Room
Patriot Live Chat
Exclusive Events
Gold Membership Card
Tucker Mug

What does Founders Club include?

Tucker Mug and Membership Card
Founders

Readers,

Instead of sucking up to the political and corporate powers that dominate America, The Daily Caller is fighting for you — our readers. We humbly ask you to consider joining us in this fight.

Now that millions of readers are rejecting the increasingly biased and even corrupt corporate media and joining us daily, there are powerful forces lined up to stop us: the old guard of the news media hopes to marginalize us; the big corporate ad agencies want to deprive us of revenue and put us out of business; senators threaten to have our reporters arrested for asking simple questions; the big tech platforms want to limit our ability to communicate with you; and the political party establishments feel threatened by our independence.

We don't complain -- we can't stand complainers -- but we do call it how we see it. We have a fight on our hands, and it's intense. We need your help to smash through the big tech, big media and big government blockade.

We're the insurgent outsiders for a reason: our deep-dive investigations hold the powerful to account. Our original videos undermine their narratives on a daily basis. Even our insistence on having fun infuriates them -- because we won’t bend the knee to political correctness.

One reason we stand apart is because we are not afraid to say we love America. We love her with every fiber of our being, and we think she's worth saving from today’s craziness.

Help us save her.

A second reason we stand out is the sheer number of honest responsible reporters we have helped train. We have trained so many solid reporters that they now hold prominent positions at publications across the political spectrum. Hear a rare reasonable voice at a place like CNN? There’s a good chance they were trained at Daily Caller. Same goes for the numerous Daily Caller alumni dominating the news coverage at outlets such as Fox News, Newsmax, Daily Wire and many others.

Simply put, America needs solid reporters fighting to tell the truth or we will never have honest elections or a fair system. We are working tirelessly to make that happen and we are making a difference.

Since 2010, The Daily Caller has grown immensely. We're in the halls of Congress. We're in the Oval Office. And we're in up to 20 million homes every single month. That's 20 million Americans like you who are impossible to ignore.

We can overcome the forces lined up against all of us. This is an important mission but we can’t do it unless you — the everyday Americans forgotten by the establishment — have our back.

Please consider becoming a Daily Caller Patriot today, and help us keep doing work that holds politicians, corporations and other leaders accountable. Help us thumb our noses at political correctness. Help us train a new generation of news reporters who will actually tell the truth. And help us remind Americans everywhere that there are millions of us who remain clear-eyed about our country's greatness.

In return for membership, Daily Caller Patriots will be able to read The Daily Caller without any of the ads that we have long used to support our mission. We know the ads drive you crazy. They drive us crazy too. But we need revenue to keep the fight going. If you join us, we will cut out the ads for you and put every Lincoln-headed cent we earn into amplifying our voice, training even more solid reporters, and giving you the ad-free experience and lightning fast website you deserve.

Patriots will also be eligible for Patriots Only content, newsletters, chats and live events with our reporters and editors. It's simple: welcome us into your lives, and we'll welcome you into ours.

We can save America together.

Become a Daily Caller Patriot today.

Signature

Neil Patel