washington —
Former White House counsel Pat Cipollone met for a private interview with the January 6 committee for about eight hours Friday regarding his role in trying to prevent then-President Donald Trump from challenging the 2020 presidential election and joining the violent mob that laid siege to the Capitol.
Cipollone, once a staunch presidential confidant who had defended Trump during his first impeachment trial, had been reluctant to appear formally for an on-record interview. Like other former White House officials, it is possible he claimed his counsel to the Republican president as privileged information he was unwilling to share with the committee.
It remained unclear after he left Capitol Hill Friday afternoon whether he had remained within those parameters during the hourslong interview.
Cipollone has been a sought-after witness after bombshell testimony revealed his apparently desperate and last-ditch efforts to prevent Trump's actions. The panel was told he had warned that the defeated president would be charged with "every crime imaginable" if he went to the Capitol on January 6, 2021, trying to stop the certification of Joe Biden's election. Cipollone was subpoenaed for his testimony.
The panel said Cipollone was "uniquely positioned to testify" in a letter accompanying the subpoena issued last week.
"Mr. Cipollone repeatedly raised legal and other concerns about President Trump's activities on January 6th and in the days that preceded," Chairman Bennie...
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