A never-before-seen video recorded on Jan. 6 has emerged showing a furious House Speaker Nancy Pelosi warning that if then-President Donald Trump marches on the US Capitol, she would “punch him out” and then happily go to jail for it.
The new video was obtained exclusively by CNN from Pelosi’s daughter, documentary filmmaker Alexandra Pelosi, and aired Thursday following what could be the final hearing by the House Jan. 6 committee.
The clip opens with Pelosi in her office watching the one-term president delivering an incendiary speech during his “Save America” rally, in which he vowed to never concede the results of the election and urged his supporters to “walk down to the Capitol.”
Pelosi remarks that “it’s very dangerous what he’s doing,” then jokingly tells her aides to relay to Trump “if he comes here, we’re going to the White House,” which draws laughter.
The Speaker then looks out the window onto the Mall and remarks on the large crowd of Trump’s followers: “They’re marching up.”
Pelosi’s Chief of Staff Terry McCullough then informs her that the Secret Service had dissuaded Trump from coming to Capitol Hill because they do not have the resources to protect him there, but she notes “that could change.”
“If he comes, I’m gonna punch him out,” a defiant Pelosi exclaims. “I’ve been waiting for this, for trespassing on the Capitol grounds. I’m gonna punch him out, and I’m gonna go to jail and I’m gonna be happy.”
Trump ultimately did not join the horde of MAGA voters at the Capitol, but the march soon turned into a violent riot that saw thousands of people, some armed with pepper spray and sticks, break into the federal building, forcing lawmakers to halt the Electoral College vote certification process and flee for their lives.
During Thursday’s hearing, the House committee aired footage of Pelosi and other congressional leaders pleading for help during the assault on the Capitol.
Pelosi can be seen on a call with the governor of Virginia, explaining as she shelters with Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and others.
“They’re breaking the law in many different ways,” Pelosi says. “And quite frankly, much of it at the instigation of the president of the United States.”
In another clip, Pelosi, who was evacuated along with Schumer and others to Fort McNair, talks about the urgent need to continue the certification process.
“We have got to finish the proceedings, or else they will have a complete victory,” the Speaker declares.
In never-before-seen Secret Service messages, the panel produced evidence that extremist groups provided the muscle in the fight for Trump’s presidency, planning weeks before the attack to send a violent force to Washington.
The House committee voted unanimously to subpoena Trump in order to compel him to testify about his role in the Jan. 6 assault.
With Post Wires
