Trump's former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows blamed the Mayor of Washington D.C. and people "from the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue" for the lack of response by the National Guard at the MAGA sedition riot at the Capitol on January 6th.
During an appearance on Fox's Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo, Meadows was asked about the attack on the Capitol, and what he knew "in terms of the threat and what was done about it."
Meadows attacked the upcoming impeachment trial as unconstitutional and an act of "political vengeance" by Democrats who just want to have a "viral moment" in front of the cameras, before proceeding to blame the Mayor of Washington D.C., Pelosi, and Democrats in Congress for the slow response by the National Guard to assist the Capitol Police.
MEADOWS: Yeah, and so we also know that in January, but also throughout the summer, that the president was very vocal in making sure that we had plenty of National Guard, plenty of additional support because he supports our rule of law and supports our law enforcement and offered additional help.
Even in January, that was given, as many as 10,000 National Guard troops were told to be on the ready by the secretary of defense. That was a direct order from president Trump, and yet here is what we see, all kinds of blame going around but yet not a whole lot of accountability. That accountability needs to rest with where it ultimately should be, and that’s on Capitol Hill.
Bartiromo asked Meadows about Pelosi's response to a reporter, who asked her about Lindsey Graham's empty threat to "bring in the FBI" if the Democrats want to have witnesses during the impeachment trial, calling it a "waste of time." Meadows again insisted that everything was done properly on their end, and Meadows again tried to lay the blame for the completely inadequate response at the feet of Pelosi, a tactic that was broadcast by Lindsey Graham on Fox a couple of weeks ago.
I can tell you that when we look at Washington, DC, the Capitol Police, many of them are my friends. I can tell you they do a tremendous job, but they need to be empowered to do that job, and there were plenty of assets there to assist them in their efforts.
And some of those decisions weren't made appropriately, in my opinion, and those decisions did not come from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, it came from the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue.
Sadly for Trump, Meadows and the rest of Trump's enablers, the timeline from January 6th tells a different story. As we discussed here, Gov. Larry Hogan was denied permission to send the National Guard for 90 minutes, and Moyers on Democracy has a detailed timeline on the insurrection and the events surrounding the siege on the Capitol on January 6th.
The Attack
If the District of Columbia were a state, its governor alone could have deployed the National Guard to crush the riot. Instead, Trump and his Defense Department had that responsibility, and an unprecedented assault on a sacred institution of government succeeded, if only for a few hours.
[...]
(DoD Memo) 1:34 p.m.: DC Mayor Muriel Bowser asks Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy – who reports to Miller – for more federal help to deal with the mob.
Bowser is told that the request must first come from the Capitol Police.
(DoD Memo) 1:49 p.m.: The Capitol Police chief asks the commanding general of the DC National Guard for immediate assistance.
[...]
(DoD Memo) 2:22 p.m.: Army Secretary McCarthy discusses the situation at the Capitol with Mayor Bowser and her staff.
They are begging for additional National Guard assistance. Note the time. It’s been almost an hour since Bowser requested help.
[...]
(D0D Memo) 2:30 p.m.: Miller, Army Secretary McCarthy, and the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff meet to discuss Mayor Bowser’s request.
[...]
(DoD Memo) 3:04 p.m.: Miller gives “verbal approval” to full mobilization of the DC National Guard (1,100 members.)
It has now been more than 90 minutes since Mayor Bowser first asked Army Secretary McCarthy for assistance. It took an hour for Defense Department officials to meet, and another half-hour for them to decide to help. And Bowser still doesn’t know the status of her request.
(Memo) 3:19 p.m.: Pelosi and Schumer call Army Secretary McCarthy, who says that Bowser’s request has now been approved.
(Memo) 3:26 p.m.: Army Secretary McCarthy calls Bowser to tell her that her request for help has been approved.
The Defense Department’s notification of approval to Bowser came two hours after her request.
[...]
(DoD Memo) 3:47 p.m. Governor Hogan mobilizes his state’s National Guard and 200 state troopers.
The Defense Department “repeatedly denies” Hogan’s request to deploy the National Guard at the Capitol. As he awaits approval, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) calls Hogan from the undisclosed bunker to which he, Speaker Pelosi, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) have been evacuated. Hoyer pleads for assistance, saying that the Capitol Police is overwhelmed and there is no federal law enforcement presence.
[...]
(DoD Memo) 4:32 p.m.: Miller gives verbal authorization to “re-mission” DC National Guard from city posts where most have been directing traffic and monitoring subway stations “to conduct perimeter and clearance operations” in support of the Capitol Police force.
4:40 p.m.: More than 90 minutes after Governor Hogan had requested federal approval to send his state’s National Guard troops to DC, Army Secretary McCarthy calls and asks, “Can you come as soon as possible?” Hogan responds, “Yeah. We’ve been waiting. We’re ready.”
5:40 p.m.: The first DC National Guard personnel arrive at the Capitol.
Meadows wasn't asked about any of that, of course, because Bartiromo is not a reporter. She's a shameless right-wing propagandist.
