Jul 3, 2022 - Politics & Policy

Cassidy Hutchinson defended by Jan. 6 panel members

Cassidy Hutchinson testifies during the Select Committee hearing

Cassidy Hutchinson testifies before the Jan. 6 select committee on June 28. Photo: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

A number of lawmakers on Sunday responded to the explosive testimony to the Jan. 6 committee last week by Cassidy Hutchinson, a top aide to former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, with many expressing their support for her.

Driving the news: Hutchinson testified that former President Donald Trump lunged at his security detail when he learned he would not be taken to the Capitol during Jan. 6.

  • Anonymous Secret Service officials have disputed the claim, but no one has said on the record that Hutchinson's testimony is false.
  • A number of Republicans have sought to discredit Hutchinson's comments as hearsay. Hutchinson's lawyers have said she stands by her testimony.

The big picture: Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) told ABC's "This Week" Sunday that Hutchinson's testimony was an "unbelievable example of bravery and of courage and patriotism" and that the Jan. 6 committee is "not going to stand by and watch her character be assassinated by anonymous sources and by men who are claiming executive privilege."

  • Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) told NBC's "Meet the Press" she found Hutchinson's testimony credible and that "we always expected Trump world to try and discredit her, and they are not disappointing us in that regard."
  • Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) told CBS' "Face the Nation" that he imagines the security concerns against Hutchinson are "very pronounced" given that "the former president and his enablers are going after her."

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) told CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday that Hutchinson's "credibility was damaged when she talked about hearsay."

  • Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) responded to Noem's attack on Hutchinson in the same program, saying, "for her to call into question, you know, a 26-year-old patriot who stood in front of the committee alone and told the truth ... I get amazed still every day by what some of my colleagues do."
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