Donald Trump removed lines about prosecuting January 6 rioters from a speech he delivered the day after the Capitol riot, according to congressional testimony provided on Monday.
The former president reportedly deleted a line that disavowed the actions of the insurrectionists. "I want to be very clear: You do not represent me. You do not represent our movement," the line allegedly read.
Trump was also originally supposed to direct the Department of Justice "to ensure all lawbreakers are prosecuted to the full extent of the law."
"We must send a clear message – not with mercy but with JUSTICE. Legal consequences must be swift and firm," the initial draft of his speech read.
RELATED: Trump "was the cancer in the center" of January 6 plot
It took more than 24 hours for President Trump to address the nation again after his Rose Garden video on January 6th in which he affectionately told his followers to go home in peace.
— Rep. Elaine Luria (@RepElaineLuria) July 25, 2022
There were more things he was unwilling to say. pic.twitter.com/cJBIX5ROxs
During the select committee's eighth hearing last week, the panel played footage of closed-door testimony from former Trump adviser Jared Kushner, the former president's son-in-law, who told the committee that he attempted "to put together some draft remarks for Jan. 7 that we were going to present to the president to try to say like we felt it was important to further call for de-escalation."
"Do you know why [Trump] wanted that crossed out?" an investigator asked Kushner, referencing sections of Trump's speech that had been omitted.
"I don't know," Kushner responded.
Want a daily wrap-up of all the news and commentary Salon has to offer? Subscribe to our morning newsletter, Crash Course.
According to closed-door testimony from John McEntee, a former Trump aide, Kushner had asked McEntee to encourage Trump to "help everything cool down" by delivering a conciliatory address.
"Was the implication that the president was in some ways reluctant to give that speech?" an investor inquired of McEntee.
"Yeah," McEntee.
"OK, what do you base that on?" the investigator asked again.
"The fact that somebody has to tell me to nudge it along," McEntee responded.
RELATED: Flailing Trump has extended meltdown on Truth Social over Jan. 6 hearing
Former White House counsel Pat Cipollone meanwhile told the committee that Trump should have issued more forceful remarks against the rioters. "In my view," Cipillone said, "he needed to express very clearly that the people who committed violent acts, went into the Capitol, did what they did, should be prosecuted and should be arrested."
