Rep. Liz Cheney on Monday revealed during a House committee hearing that multiple Fox News hosts texted the White House chief of staff Mark Meadows during the Jan. 6 riot on the Capitol. The messages revealed that Sean Hannity and others had urged former President Trump to act on Jan. 6.
The House select committee is investigating the Capitol riot and proceeding with holding Meadows in criminal contempt on Congress for not complying with a subpoena. Cheney read the text exchanges aloud during the hearing, with one from Laura Ingraham that said: “The president needs to tell people in the Capitol to go home. … He is destroying his legacy.”
Another text from Sean Hannity to Meadows on the same day said: “Can he make a statement?… Ask people to leave the Capitol?”
“He’s got to condemn this shit ASAP. The Capitol Police tweet is not enough,“ Cheney read from one text. Another read: “We need an Oval Office address. He has to lead now. It has gone too far and gotten out of hand.”
Watch video of the Cheney’s comments during the Jan. 6 committee hearing here or below.
The committee on Monday voted to hold Meadows in contempt after he failed to appear before the panel in November. A committee report released Sunday that recommended the move said that Meadows sent an email the day prior to the riots telling an individual that National Guard would be there to protect “pro Trump people.”
Meadows is the third person to get recommended for contempt proceedings from this committee. Former White House strategist Steve Bannon will stand trial for his charge in July 2022, and former Just Department official Jeffrey Clark’s deposition has been postponed until Dec. 16 due to a medical condition.