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January 6 US Capitol riot hearing: Focus on Donald Trump's movements during riot, two former aides testify — as it happened

In the eighth hearing, the January 6 committee focused on what former US president Donald Trump was doing while rioters stormed the Capitol.

Look back on how the hearing unfolded in our blog. 

Live updates

By Jessica Riga

This is where we'll leave things

Thank you for your company today as Shiloh, Lucy and I, together with our Washington bureau, brought you the latest from Friday's January 6 hearing.

We've been promised this won't be the last time we'll hear evidence, with the House Committee to reconvene in September for further hearings.

So we'll see you then to pick up where we left off. Bye for now!

By Jessica Riga

Key Event

Here are the key takeaways from today's January 6 hearing

The first round of January 6 hearings may have ended, but the committee investigating the Capitol riot seems to be just getting started. 

The prime-time hearing gave the most detailed account yet of what former president Donald Trump did — and didn't do — for more than three hours while his supporters tried to violently stop the transfer of power.

Despite pleas "from nearly everyone", including White House staff, his family and members of US Congress, he refused to act until 4.17pm when he tweeted a video, calling on them to leave.

In the link below, Joanna Robin in Washington DC and Rebecca Armitage step us through what we learned from the latest January 6.

By Jessica Riga

More thoughts from you following the latest hearing

Those outtakes say all there is to know about Trump. He has such a distorted view of the truth and cannot accept responsibility for his actions or inactions. I am dreading his intentions to run again.

- Kim

Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us, Kim.

While Donald Trump hasn't said if he'll run again in 2024, he's also never ruled it out.

By Shiloh Payne

Hearing reveals 'clear evidence'

Former US Kansas State Democrat Senator Donald Betts says the inquiry has heard "clear evidence" as Donald Trump ignored pleas from his family to condemn the riots.

Inquiry hears Trump ignored pleas to condemn riots

By Shiloh Payne

Here are some photos from the hearing

By Jessica Riga

Watch: Here's the video of Trump saying 'I don't want to say the election is over'

Unused footage of former US President Donald Trump's concession speech shows his reluctance to condemn Capitol rioters.

Unused takes of Donald Trump's concession speech after Jan 6 Capitol Riot

By Jessica Riga

Now that it's over, what did you think?

Fascinating stuff !!!

- Coffee Maker

Agreed, and I think I'll need another coffee.

By Jessica Riga

Liz Cheney wraps up, saying 'we have much work yet to do'

"Let me assure every one of you this: Our committee understands the gravity of this moment, the consequences for our nation. We have much work yet to do and we will see you all in September."

By Jessica Riga

Trump 'preyed on his supporters' patriotism', vice-chair says

Vice-chair Liz Cheney has provided a pretty powerful closing address.

"Here's the worst part: Donald Trump knows that millions of Americans who supported him would stand up and defend our nation were it threatened," she says.

"They would put their lives and their freedom at stake to protect her. And he is preying on their patriotism. He is preying on their sense of justice.

"And on January 6, Donald Trump turned their love of country into a weapon against our Capitol and our Constitution."

By Jessica Riga

Liz Cheney thanks Republican witnesses

Vice-chair Liz Cheney has acknowledged the Republican witnesses, both from this hearing and previous ones.

"This committee has shown you the testimony of dozens of Republican witnesses, those who served President Trump loyally for years.

"The case against Donald Trump in these hearings is not made by witnesses who were his political enemies. It is instead a series of confessions by Donald Trump's own appointees, his own friends, his own campaign officials, people who worked for him for years, and his own family.

"They have come forward and they have told the American people the truth."

By Lucy Sweeney

This is beyond party politics

Here's North America correspondent Carrington Clarke on that closing speech from Republican Adam Kinzinger:

"An impassioned speech from Republican Adam Kinzinger, excoriating the former president for his dereliction of duty and saying this isn't a question of politics.

"That no matter your ideology you should not accept the standard of behaviour Donald Trump exhibited.

"It's not a campaign speech, Mr Kinzinger is retiring at this election after being rebuked by his party for his vote to impeach Donald Trump."

By Jessica Riga

It sounds like we're hearing some closing statements now

Here's a bit of what committee member Adam Kinzinger has said:

"We, the people, must demand more of our politicians and ourselves. Oaths matter. Character matters. Truth matters. If we do not renew our faith and commitment to these principles, this great experiment of ours, our shining beacon on a hill, will not endure."

And here's more from committee member Elaine Luria:

"I first swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution against enemies foreign and domestic when I entered the US Naval Academy at age 17. I spent two decades on ships at sea, defending our nation from known and identifiable foreign enemies who sought to do us harm. I never imagined that that enemy would come from within. Abraham Lincoln, who 23 years before the Civil War said, "If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and its finisher." Donald Trump was the author and we, the people, for ourselves and our posterity, should not let Donald Trump be the finisher."

Committee chair Bennie Thompson has also reappeared via video link to provide his closing address:

"As we've made clear throughout these hearings, our investigation is going forward. We continue to receive new information every day. We are pursuing many additional witnesses for testimony. We will reconvene in September to continue laying out our findings to the American people and pushing for accountability."

By Jessica Riga

Key Event

Top campaign officials slammed Trump's silence on death on police officer

We're being shown more texts now.

On January 9, two of President Trump's top campaign officials texted each other about the president's glaring silence on the death of Capitol police officer, who succumbed to his injuries the night of January 7.

"His campaign officials were Trump's director of communications, Tim Murtaugh, and one of his deputies, Matthew Walking. Their job was to convince people to vote for President Trump, so they knew his heart, his mind, and his voice as well as anyone. And they knew how he connects with his supporters," Ms Luria says.

By Jessica Riga

Key Event

Video shows Trump saying 'I don't want to say the election is over'

We're now being shown raw footage of a video message from Donald Trump from his January 7 address.

It includes some clips that were edited out of the final cut.

It features Mr Trump stumbling over his words, slamming his hands on his podium, and making suggestions to the script he's reading.

"I don't want to say the election is over," Mr Trump says.

There's then a lot of back and forth with someone off camera as they try to settle on phrasing Mr Trump is happy with.

By Shiloh Payne

Footage shows Pence's security detail were fearing for their lives

Jan 6 hearing committee examines correspondence among Mike Pence's security detail during Capitol Riot

By Jessica Riga

Key Event

Trump was urged to stop publicly questioning election results

Here's hearing from committee member Adam Kinzinger now.

He says a White House secretary wanted President Trump to convene a cabinet meeting.

In a memo, the secretary recommended that the president "no longer publicly question the election results. After Wednesday, no-one can deny this is harmful."

The secretary also highlighted the importance of the public knowing the president would invoke his cabinet in decision-making and not "certain private individuals"

"Though the secretary did not say it, he was referring to Rudy Giuliani and the rest of the so-called "clown car" working with President Trump to try to overturn the election," Mr Kinzinger says.

By Jessica Riga

Key Event

Pence's security team were terrified, says there were 'calls to say goodbye to family'

Chat logs maintained by the White House national security staff included a reference to the fact that Secret Service agent inside the Capitol "did not sound good right now."

And according to an unnamed White House security official, Mike Pence's security detail was terrified as rioters assaulted the Capitol.

"There were calls to say goodbye to family members," the official has testified.

By Jessica Riga

We're now unpacking this specific Trump tweet

The 6:01pm tweet read: "Go home with peace and love. Remember this day forever!"

Sarah Matthews said: "This tweet just further cemented my decision [to resign].

"I thought that January 6, 2021, was one of the darkest days in our nation's history and President Trump was treating it as a celebratory occasion with that tweet."

By Jessica Riga

Former White House aide says Trump's video message needed to be 'more forceful'

Judd Deere, a former White House Deputy Press Secretary, said Donald Trump's video message at 4:17pm was "the bare minimum of what could have been said at that point.

He said Mr Trump needed to have "a more forcefull dismissal of the violence and more forceful command to go home.

"And I thought it was important that an acknowledgement be given to the US Capitol building itself. What it is a symbol of, what it means. Not only to the people that work there, but to the American people generally and the work of Congress that, by law, needed to be conducted that day."

By Shiloh Payne

Key Event

Former press aide said she knew she would be resigining on the evening of January 6

Sarah Matthews, who is a former press aide, says she found Donald Trump's refusal to condemn the violence as "indefensible".

"I was struck by the fact that he chose to begin the video by pushing the lie that there was a stolen election," Ms Matthews says.

"He didn't distinguish between those that peacefully attended his speech earlier that day and those that we watched because violence at the Capitol.

"Instead, he told the people who we had just watched storm our nation's Capitol with the intent on overthrowing our democracy, violently attacked police officers and Chad heinous things like 'Hang Mike Pence,' 'We love you, you are very special.'

"As a spokesperson, I knew I would have been asked to defend that. To me, his refusal to act and call off the mark that they and his refusal to condemn the violence was very indefensible.

"I knew I would be resigning that evening and I finished off the workday, went home and called my loved ones to tell them of my decision and resigned that evening."

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