That One Jan. 6 Tweet Trump Cites as His Defense? He Didn’t Even Write It!

Donald Trump has repeatedly insisted he urged January 6 rioters to protest peacefully. But according to a new report, he didn’t even write one of the main tweets he cites in this defense.

Some of Trump’s closest allies revealed to special counsel Jack Smith, who has indicted Trump for trying to overthrow the 2020 election, that the former president refused to help stop the insurrection, ABC reported on Sunday, citing anonymous sources close to Smith’s investigation.

Trump’s longtime adviser and former deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino said that even as the violence increased, Trump was “just not interested” in stopping it. Instead, Trump was content to sit and watch the riot unfold on television.

Sources told ABC that former Trump aide Nick Luna had at one point warned his boss that then–Vice President Mike Pence had to be taken to a secure location. Trump replied, “So what?”

Trump then tweeted that Pence “didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done.” His advisers were shocked he would add such incendiary commentary to the growing riot.

As the situation grew worse, Scavino said he printed out potential tweets Trump could post to urge the rioters not to get violent. At 2:38 p.m., after many protesters had already breached the Capitol, Trump finally let Scavino post a message on Trump’s Twitter (now called X) account telling the mob to “stay peaceful.”

Minutes later, Trump supporter Ashli Babbitt was shot dead when she tried to break through a barricaded entrance. The insurrection did not stop until Trump—after nearly two hours of begging from his aides, advisers, family members, and allies in Congress—posted a video telling his supporters, “Go home. We love you. You’re very special.”

Since he was indicted in August for his role in the January 6 attack, Trump and his lawyers have continually insisted that he told the crowd to be peaceful. And Trump did, exactly twice. Once during his speech at the Ellipse, when he said, “I know that everyone here will soon be marching over to the Capitol building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard.” And a second time in his weak tweet.

But during his speech, Trump couched that one reference to peaceful protest in a stream of otherwise incendiary rhetoric. He falsely claimed that he had won the election and that Pence and Congress had the right not to certify Joe Biden’s win. And his speech ultimately whipped the crowd up into an angry mob that stormed the Capitol.

As for his tweet, it now turns out that Trump wasn’t all that pressed to urge for peace anyway.