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THREAD 🚨 On November 1, 2023, Day 3 of the Colorado hearing, former @realDonaldTrump admin aide Kash Patel testified in the case to determine whether the 14th Amendment’s “insurrectionist ban” can be used to prevent former President Donald Trump from appearing on Colorado’s presidential election ballots.
“Let’s briefly discuss your background. Am I correct that you’re a recovering lawyer?”
KASH: “Yes. . . I have not practiced law in close to a decade.”
“When did you practice law?”
KASH: “When I first graduated law school in 2005, I started as an assistant public defender in Miami-Dade County and later went on to serve as an assistant federal public defender for the southern district of Florida. And thereafter I transitioned to the Department of Justice’s national security division, where I served as a terrorism prosecutor and later [inaudible] on Capitol Hill after.”
KASH: “Yes. . . I have not practiced law in close to a decade.”
“When did you practice law?”
KASH: “When I first graduated law school in 2005, I started as an assistant public defender in Miami-Dade County and later went on to serve as an assistant federal public defender for the southern district of Florida. And thereafter I transitioned to the Department of Justice’s national security division, where I served as a terrorism prosecutor and later [inaudible] on Capitol Hill after.”
“When you were at the DOJ did you also serve as legal liaison to the Department of Defense?”
KASH: “My duties, while being a terrorism prosecutor, I was the selected representative to be the DOJ liaison to Joint Special Operations Command and vet the Special Forces Unit to work on collaborative global targeting operations.”
“How long were you at the Department of Justice?”
KASH: “Approximately 4 years.”
“When did you leave the DOJ?”
KASH: “When I left the Department of Justice, I went on to serve senior counsel and national security advisor to the House Permanent Select Committee at the U.S. Congress where my duties were to run the counter-terrorism platform oversight operations. And I also served as the lead chief investigative counsel for the investigation into Russian active measures.”
KASH: “My duties, while being a terrorism prosecutor, I was the selected representative to be the DOJ liaison to Joint Special Operations Command and vet the Special Forces Unit to work on collaborative global targeting operations.”
“How long were you at the Department of Justice?”
KASH: “Approximately 4 years.”
“When did you leave the DOJ?”
KASH: “When I left the Department of Justice, I went on to serve senior counsel and national security advisor to the House Permanent Select Committee at the U.S. Congress where my duties were to run the counter-terrorism platform oversight operations. And I also served as the lead chief investigative counsel for the investigation into Russian active measures.”
“Am I correct that you were with the House from 2017 to 2019?”
KASH: “Yes, that’s correct, just about early 2019.”
“Where did you go in early 2019?”
KASH: “Thereafter I transitioned to White House national security council, and I would shortly after going to the White House, become the senior director for counter-terrorism where I ran the counter-terrorism council platform for President Trump along with the hostage portfolio, counter narcotics and counter-human trafficking, and a slew of other counter-terrorism related matters.”
KASH: “Yes, that’s correct, just about early 2019.”
“Where did you go in early 2019?”
KASH: “Thereafter I transitioned to White House national security council, and I would shortly after going to the White House, become the senior director for counter-terrorism where I ran the counter-terrorism council platform for President Trump along with the hostage portfolio, counter narcotics and counter-human trafficking, and a slew of other counter-terrorism related matters.”
“And how long did you stay in that position?”
KASH: “On and off for 2 years… the role was broken up by one temporary duty assignment where I served as the Deputy Director of National Intelligence over at the Office of the Directorate of National Intelligence, where our duties were to oversee the 17 intelligence organizations along with providing Presidential daily briefings to the President’s cabinet. I would return to the White House after 4-5 months of ODNI (Office of the Director of National Intelligence), and I would finish the administration’s term as Chief of Staff over at the Department of Defense.”
“And who were you supporting as Chief of Staff?”
KASH: “At the time, it was Acting Secretary of Defense, Christopher C. Miller.”
KASH: “On and off for 2 years… the role was broken up by one temporary duty assignment where I served as the Deputy Director of National Intelligence over at the Office of the Directorate of National Intelligence, where our duties were to oversee the 17 intelligence organizations along with providing Presidential daily briefings to the President’s cabinet. I would return to the White House after 4-5 months of ODNI (Office of the Director of National Intelligence), and I would finish the administration’s term as Chief of Staff over at the Department of Defense.”
“And who were you supporting as Chief of Staff?”
KASH: “At the time, it was Acting Secretary of Defense, Christopher C. Miller.”
“And when did you finish up your term as Chief of Staff to the Acting Secretary of Defense?”
KASH: “We both had our terms expire on January 20, 2021, at high noon.”
“What do you do now?”
KASH: “I have multiple roles; I am a consultant. I have a national security practice. I am a senior fellow at the Center for Renewing America in national security, I serve on the board of TMTG Technology, I am a senior advisor to President @realDonaldTrump national security defense and intel, and I also have a 501c3 charity where I serve as the President of the Kash Foundation where we have multiple efforts giving money away to those in need.”
“I’d like to focus on your time as Chief of Staff to the Acting Secretary of Defense [Christopher C. Miller]…”
KASH: “We both had our terms expire on January 20, 2021, at high noon.”
“What do you do now?”
KASH: “I have multiple roles; I am a consultant. I have a national security practice. I am a senior fellow at the Center for Renewing America in national security, I serve on the board of TMTG Technology, I am a senior advisor to President @realDonaldTrump national security defense and intel, and I also have a 501c3 charity where I serve as the President of the Kash Foundation where we have multiple efforts giving money away to those in need.”
“I’d like to focus on your time as Chief of Staff to the Acting Secretary of Defense [Christopher C. Miller]…”
“I would like to show you what’s been marked as Exhibit 1027, which I believe I already in or has not been objected to. Can you see Exhibit 1027 [and] do you know what that is?”
KASH: “It’s one of the Department of Defense timelines encapsulating our involvement in and around the events of January 6, 2021.”
“If you would look at the third bullet point, under the heading, “Sunday, January 3, 2021,” it reads, A/SD CSCS meet with the President. “President concurs in the activation of DCNG to support law enforcement. Do you see that?”
KASH: “Yes I do, sir.”
KASH: “It’s one of the Department of Defense timelines encapsulating our involvement in and around the events of January 6, 2021.”
“If you would look at the third bullet point, under the heading, “Sunday, January 3, 2021,” it reads, A/SD CSCS meet with the President. “President concurs in the activation of DCNG to support law enforcement. Do you see that?”
KASH: “Yes I do, sir.”
“What does the abbreviation A/SD mean in DOD?”
KASH: “Acting Secretary of Defense.”
“And that would be Acting Secretary of Defense Miller working at the time?”
KASH: “Yes.”
“What about CJCS?”
KASH: “Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff, which at the time was Chairman Mark Milley.”
KASH: “Acting Secretary of Defense.”
“And that would be Acting Secretary of Defense Miller working at the time?”
KASH: “Yes.”
“What about CJCS?”
KASH: “Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff, which at the time was Chairman Mark Milley.”
“And what do you understand DCNG to mean?”
KASH: “That is the abbreviation for the Washington, D.C. National Guard bureau. Every state has its own National Guard. [Since] D.C. is a federal complex, they have their own National Guard.”
“So what do you understand this entry to be conveying?”
KASH: “We had a meeting at the White House as indicated by the timeline on January 3rd about [matters] unrelated to this regarding national security, and at that meeting President Trump brought up the possibility of utilizing National Guard for the upcoming voting confirmation process, and that bullet point refers to his authorization which was captured in this timeline.”
“And was the purpose of that to support local authorities and law enforcement?”
KASH: “The purpose of National Guard has always been, according to my understand, to support local law enforcement when a request is made through their chain of command which would be the governor or the mayor since it’s Washington, D.C., or the Capitol Police Chief since we’re talking about the Capitol building and grounds in Washington, D.C.”
KASH: “That is the abbreviation for the Washington, D.C. National Guard bureau. Every state has its own National Guard. [Since] D.C. is a federal complex, they have their own National Guard.”
“So what do you understand this entry to be conveying?”
KASH: “We had a meeting at the White House as indicated by the timeline on January 3rd about [matters] unrelated to this regarding national security, and at that meeting President Trump brought up the possibility of utilizing National Guard for the upcoming voting confirmation process, and that bullet point refers to his authorization which was captured in this timeline.”
“And was the purpose of that to support local authorities and law enforcement?”
KASH: “The purpose of National Guard has always been, according to my understand, to support local law enforcement when a request is made through their chain of command which would be the governor or the mayor since it’s Washington, D.C., or the Capitol Police Chief since we’re talking about the Capitol building and grounds in Washington, D.C.”
“Now, I’d like to show you Exhibit 1031, which has also been previously admitted. Let’s start with the cover page. Sir, do you recognize this as the November 16, 2021 report of the Department of Defense Inspector General regarding his review of the Department of Defense’s role, responsibilities, and actions to prepare for and respond to the protests and aftermath of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021?”
KASH: “I do.”
“Ok. Since it was prepared November 16, 2021, that would’ve been during the @JoeBiden administration, correct?”
KASH: “That is correct.”
“Were you interviewed for that report?”
KASH: “I was not.”
KASH: “I do.”
“Ok. Since it was prepared November 16, 2021, that would’ve been during the @JoeBiden administration, correct?”
KASH: “That is correct.”
“Were you interviewed for that report?”
KASH: “I was not.”
“Joanna, if you could put up page 15 now, please. . . Let me direct your attention to Table 1 starting on page 15 and then we’ll carry on to page 16 which we will get to in a minute. Do you recognize that as a chronology of significant events leading up to January 6?”
KASH: “Yes.”
“Let me direct your attention to the second entry, December 31, 2020. Do you see that entry?”
KASH: “Yep, I got it.”
KASH: “Yes.”
“Let me direct your attention to the second entry, December 31, 2020. Do you see that entry?”
KASH: “Yep, I got it.”
“Does it discuss a D.C. RFA to the DCNG for January 5-6, 2021, for, and I am paraphrasing, “Traffic control, crowd control, metro stations, and response capability?”
KASH: “Yes.”
“Could you please explain what you understand that entry to mean?”
KASH: “An RFA is a request for assistance, which is the formal verbiage when an appropriate level officer or secretary submits a request for national guard assistance. And as it’s documented here, that RFA went specifically to the Washington, D.C. National Guard for the very specific duties of performing traffic control at intersections and crowd control at metro stations. When requests for National Guard are provided, they are also, as notified here, granted per specificity as to what they’re requesting, not just general people. That’s encapsulated by this bullet point here. MG Walker, at the time, Major General Walker of the DCNG; Mr. McCarthy was a Secretary to the Army at the time. The Secretary of the Army controls the entire National Guard work structure in the United States of America.”
KASH: “Yes.”
“Could you please explain what you understand that entry to mean?”
KASH: “An RFA is a request for assistance, which is the formal verbiage when an appropriate level officer or secretary submits a request for national guard assistance. And as it’s documented here, that RFA went specifically to the Washington, D.C. National Guard for the very specific duties of performing traffic control at intersections and crowd control at metro stations. When requests for National Guard are provided, they are also, as notified here, granted per specificity as to what they’re requesting, not just general people. That’s encapsulated by this bullet point here. MG Walker, at the time, Major General Walker of the DCNG; Mr. McCarthy was a Secretary to the Army at the time. The Secretary of the Army controls the entire National Guard work structure in the United States of America.”
“And this RFA, this request for assistance, was that coming from the D.C. local government?”
KASH: “Yes, that’s what all those letters stands for.”
“So, if I understand that correctly, the D.C. local government was requesting a limited number of D.C. National Guard members. To your recollection, was that 340? Is that right?”
KASH: “Specifically, it was 346. The request came in from Mayor Bowser’s office, who was Mayor of D.C. at the time, and the specific request was not just numbers but what their assistance could be utilized for which was our practice and receiving our request… to know how to arm and man our troops. And in this instance they would not be armed, if I recall correctly they would be wearing bright yellow vests and assisting in traffic duties and possibly be wearing protective gear but that would be about it to my recollection.”
KASH: “Yes, that’s what all those letters stands for.”
“So, if I understand that correctly, the D.C. local government was requesting a limited number of D.C. National Guard members. To your recollection, was that 340? Is that right?”
KASH: “Specifically, it was 346. The request came in from Mayor Bowser’s office, who was Mayor of D.C. at the time, and the specific request was not just numbers but what their assistance could be utilized for which was our practice and receiving our request… to know how to arm and man our troops. And in this instance they would not be armed, if I recall correctly they would be wearing bright yellow vests and assisting in traffic duties and possibly be wearing protective gear but that would be about it to my recollection.”
“Now if you could switch to page 16, Joanna. And I would direct your attention to the second entry for January 3, 2021. That entry reads, “Mr. Miller and General Miller attend a White House meeting. At the end of the meeting, the President @realDonaldTrump asked about election protest preparations, and Mr. Miller tells him, “We’ve got a plan and we’ve got it covered.” Do you see that?”
KASH: “Yes.”
“Do you understand that to be the same January 3rd [2021] meeting discussed in the Department of Defense timeline we reviewed a few minutes ago?”
KASH: “One in the same.”
“Did you attend that meeting?”
KASH: “I did.”
KASH: “Yes.”
“Do you understand that to be the same January 3rd [2021] meeting discussed in the Department of Defense timeline we reviewed a few minutes ago?”
KASH: “One in the same.”
“Did you attend that meeting?”
KASH: “I did.”
“Did you attend, in your capacity as the Acting Secretary of Defense’s Chief of Staff?”
KASH: “I did.”
“Was it common practice for you to attend meetings at the White House when the Acting Secretary attended?”
KASH: “Almost every one.”
“Do you remember where that meeting took place?”
KASH: “In the Oval Office.”
KASH: “I did.”
“Was it common practice for you to attend meetings at the White House when the Acting Secretary attended?”
KASH: “Almost every one.”
“Do you remember where that meeting took place?”
KASH: “In the Oval Office.”
“Can you tell us what was discussed at that meeting?”
KASH: “Mostly no, because it was involving a matter of national security that I am not privy to discuss here that had nothing to do with these events and then at the back end as the timeline notates, there was a discussion briefly about National Guard forces and the upcoming protest.”
KASH: “Mostly no, because it was involving a matter of national security that I am not privy to discuss here that had nothing to do with these events and then at the back end as the timeline notates, there was a discussion briefly about National Guard forces and the upcoming protest.”
“According to the timeline we just looked at, the Acting Secretary told the President @realDonaldTrump, “We’ve got a plan and we’ve got it covered.” Was there any other or further detail discussed at that meeting?”
KASH: “Yeah, I don’t remember exactly the verbiage but having, as you walk through, prior to January 3rd, specifically, on December 30-31st [2020] the request for National Guard coming in, our practice under the law as we understood it was that we needed a Presidential authorization for it. During this conversation, the President authorized 10-20,000 National Guardsmen and [Guards]women to be utilized when necessary around the country to provide assistance to local law enforcement.”
KASH: “Yeah, I don’t remember exactly the verbiage but having, as you walk through, prior to January 3rd, specifically, on December 30-31st [2020] the request for National Guard coming in, our practice under the law as we understood it was that we needed a Presidential authorization for it. During this conversation, the President authorized 10-20,000 National Guardsmen and [Guards]women to be utilized when necessary around the country to provide assistance to local law enforcement.”
“So, as of that January 3rd meeting, was there any doubt in your mind that the President @realDonaldTrump was on board with DOD using whatever National Guard resources were needed in its discretion?”
“Objection.”
KASH: “No, he authorized it.”
“Sustained. Why don’t you ask the question again, please.”
“Sure.”
“And, Mr. Patel, you need to, before answering it, which there has been an objection which you may not have heard, you need to let me roll, ok?”
KASH: “I’m sorry, m’am, I didn’t hear that.”
“Did you have any doubt, as you left that January 3rd meeting, that the President was on board with DOD using whatever National Guard resources were needed in its discretion?”
“Objection.”
“Sustained. Try again.”
“At the conclusion of that January 3rd meeting, what was your impression of the President’s position on the use of the National Guard.”
“Objection. . .”
“He can respond to a question [regarding his] impression.”
“Objection overruled.”
KASH: “My understanding from that meeting was that the President has authorized the National Guard troops we needed and under the law as we understood it for National Guard purposes; we had Step 1 of the 2-step process. And so, we had everything we needed, because it’s what we do all the time, to go get Step 2 of the plan which is why Acting Secretary of Defense Chris Miller said, “We’ve got a plan, and we’ve got it covered.”
“Objection.”
KASH: “No, he authorized it.”
“Sustained. Why don’t you ask the question again, please.”
“Sure.”
“And, Mr. Patel, you need to, before answering it, which there has been an objection which you may not have heard, you need to let me roll, ok?”
KASH: “I’m sorry, m’am, I didn’t hear that.”
“Did you have any doubt, as you left that January 3rd meeting, that the President was on board with DOD using whatever National Guard resources were needed in its discretion?”
“Objection.”
“Sustained. Try again.”
“At the conclusion of that January 3rd meeting, what was your impression of the President’s position on the use of the National Guard.”
“Objection. . .”
“He can respond to a question [regarding his] impression.”
“Objection overruled.”
KASH: “My understanding from that meeting was that the President has authorized the National Guard troops we needed and under the law as we understood it for National Guard purposes; we had Step 1 of the 2-step process. And so, we had everything we needed, because it’s what we do all the time, to go get Step 2 of the plan which is why Acting Secretary of Defense Chris Miller said, “We’ve got a plan, and we’ve got it covered.”
“To your knowledge, did anyone in DOD leadership over the coming days ever suggest more or different authority was needed from President @realDonaldTrump in order to utilize the National Guard troops?”
“Objection.”
“I asked about his knowledge, your Honor.”
“Overruled. You may answer it.”
KASH: “Under our practice, we would consult with the Office of the General Counsel with the Department of Defense along with the White House Counsel’s office, for any legal requirements that we might need. But from my perspective, and my conversation with the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman, the Secretary of the Army, we had what we needed to initiate, under the law, the first of the zero, one-two-three phases as we call it, for the deployment of the activation of the National Guard.”
“Objection.”
“I asked about his knowledge, your Honor.”
“Overruled. You may answer it.”
KASH: “Under our practice, we would consult with the Office of the General Counsel with the Department of Defense along with the White House Counsel’s office, for any legal requirements that we might need. But from my perspective, and my conversation with the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman, the Secretary of the Army, we had what we needed to initiate, under the law, the first of the zero, one-two-three phases as we call it, for the deployment of the activation of the National Guard.”
“At that meeting, did you understand President @realDonaldTrump to have limited DOD’s authority to deploy National Guard troops in support of the civil authorities in any way?”
KASH: “No, just that the number was 10-20,000 so, if by chance we needed more we would’ve had to have gone back to the Commander in Chief.”
KASH: “No, just that the number was 10-20,000 so, if by chance we needed more we would’ve had to have gone back to the Commander in Chief.”
“Let’s go back to Exhibit 1031 page 16, which I think we were already on. Let me direct you to the third entry from the bottom, which reads, “January 5, 2021”. “During the evening, the President @realDonaldTrump calls Mr. Miller to discuss the upcoming rallies. Mr. Miller told us that the President told him to “Do what’s required to protect the American people.” Do you understand that to mean deploying National Guard troops?”
KASH: “Yes.”
“Was there anything else that you can think of that it might be referring to?”
KASH: “No because Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller and I spoke about that.”
“Objection.”
“Sustained.”
KASH: “Yes.”
“Was there anything else that you can think of that it might be referring to?”
KASH: “No because Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller and I spoke about that.”
“Objection.”
“Sustained.”
“When you and Secretary Miller spoke about that conversation, was it in order to take a course of action?”
KASH: “We didn’t need to take a further course of action. We had already implemented implemented our processes under the President’s authorization under the law, and to be [inaudible]. So this was just another Presidential statement. We had what we needed.”
KASH: “We didn’t need to take a further course of action. We had already implemented implemented our processes under the President’s authorization under the law, and to be [inaudible]. So this was just another Presidential statement. We had what we needed.”
“Were detailed operational plans of the deployment of the National Guard discussed with the President?”
KASH: “No. I can’t think of a time when we’d do that.”
“Why not?”
KASH: “Well, the President is the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, the duties to the multiple, we call them “FRAGOs” and the orders of the like are delegated down to SECDEF which is he National Command authority, down to further delegations of the Secretary of the Army. We go to the President for the authorization needed to keep [everything] abreast, and any issues that we think are important that rise to attention, but we have career professional place to perform the logistical preparatory works such as activating the National Guard and running drills.”
KASH: “No. I can’t think of a time when we’d do that.”
“Why not?”
KASH: “Well, the President is the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, the duties to the multiple, we call them “FRAGOs” and the orders of the like are delegated down to SECDEF which is he National Command authority, down to further delegations of the Secretary of the Army. We go to the President for the authorization needed to keep [everything] abreast, and any issues that we think are important that rise to attention, but we have career professional place to perform the logistical preparatory works such as activating the National Guard and running drills.”
“Between January 3rd and January 6th, were you personally paying attention to the National Guard issue?”
KASH: “Yes.”
“In what way?”
KASH: “Well as the individual not just charged with being Chief of Staff for the Acting Secretary of Defense but for the entire Department of Defense, and his office, I was directly responsible for everything under the Secretary to make sure orders he gave were followed and I was at close to almost every meeting regarding National Guard forces, their employment, deployment, and activation.”
KASH: “Yes.”
“In what way?”
KASH: “Well as the individual not just charged with being Chief of Staff for the Acting Secretary of Defense but for the entire Department of Defense, and his office, I was directly responsible for everything under the Secretary to make sure orders he gave were followed and I was at close to almost every meeting regarding National Guard forces, their employment, deployment, and activation.”
“Did you attend meetings with law enforcement agencies, at which the topic was discussed?”
KASH: “I think I was at the FBI Washington Field Office one time with then Deputy Director [inaudible] if I recall correctly.”
“Were you aware of and following communications with local authorities about the subject of the National Guard?”
KASH: “What we did, because the Secretary of the Army was the point person, Secretary McCarthy was direct liaison to law enforcement in Mayor Bowser’s office, that was her established practice, that was the established practice going back to the summer of 2020, specifically and before that. That was [McCarthy’s] job, so there was no need for us to directly engage. We had our appropriate military personnel and their staffs working directly with local law enforcement.”
KASH: “I think I was at the FBI Washington Field Office one time with then Deputy Director [inaudible] if I recall correctly.”
“Were you aware of and following communications with local authorities about the subject of the National Guard?”
KASH: “What we did, because the Secretary of the Army was the point person, Secretary McCarthy was direct liaison to law enforcement in Mayor Bowser’s office, that was her established practice, that was the established practice going back to the summer of 2020, specifically and before that. That was [McCarthy’s] job, so there was no need for us to directly engage. We had our appropriate military personnel and their staffs working directly with local law enforcement.”
“So just to close this out, to your knowledge, did any senior DOJ leader ever state in words or substance that they felt they needed more or different authorization from President @realDonaldTrump before they could deploy National Guard troops to keep the peace on January 6, 2021?”
KASH: “No.”
KASH: “No.”
“Ok so the Department of Defense, based on what you’re telling us, felt they had authority to use National Guard troops and President @realDonaldTrump had been clear that he wanted DOD to do what was necessary to protect the American people. So why didn’t we have 10,000 National Guard troops suited up and armed and guarding the Capitol on the morning of January 6, 2021?”
KASH: “There’s a multitude of reasons, but mainly as the law, which the Department of Defense has operated under, pursuant to the Office of General Counsel of the White House’s Office, and probably the last 100 years of National Guard authorities, Step 1 was the Commander in Chief’s authorization, Step 2 was a request by the government body, the local government body, which is [normally] the governor but in this instance it’s the mayor since it’s Washington D.C., and/or the heads of the Capitol Police bureau because we’re talking about the Capitol building. Absent those requests, we were under the advisement of legal counsel’s offices that we could not activate the National Guard. We could and did everything we could up to the legal limits, try to begin the processes of getting these folks ready in case that request came in. What I mean by that is, people forget the National Guard is part-time military; they’re doctors, they’re lawyers, they’re teachers, they’re husbands, they’re wives, et cetera. We have to go get them. And then, after the request is made we can do that, and bring the authorities in that we have at the Office of the Secretary of Defense. Absent the request, we could not fully launch that process.”
KASH: “There’s a multitude of reasons, but mainly as the law, which the Department of Defense has operated under, pursuant to the Office of General Counsel of the White House’s Office, and probably the last 100 years of National Guard authorities, Step 1 was the Commander in Chief’s authorization, Step 2 was a request by the government body, the local government body, which is [normally] the governor but in this instance it’s the mayor since it’s Washington D.C., and/or the heads of the Capitol Police bureau because we’re talking about the Capitol building. Absent those requests, we were under the advisement of legal counsel’s offices that we could not activate the National Guard. We could and did everything we could up to the legal limits, try to begin the processes of getting these folks ready in case that request came in. What I mean by that is, people forget the National Guard is part-time military; they’re doctors, they’re lawyers, they’re teachers, they’re husbands, they’re wives, et cetera. We have to go get them. And then, after the request is made we can do that, and bring the authorities in that we have at the Office of the Secretary of Defense. Absent the request, we could not fully launch that process.”
“Did part of the process involve reaching out to the local authorities to see if they wanted National Guard involvement?”
“Objection.”
“Overruled.”
KASH: “Normally, no. Normally the request would come in. But in this instance, the Secretary and I, along with others, felt this matter was important enough that we ordered the Secretary of the Army, after that authorization came in on January 3rd, to begin engagements with Mayor Bowser and the Capitol Police, who he had already been speaking to on other matters. We wanted to make them aware that the President had authorized 10-20,000 National Guard and we wanted to ask them if they had request, sort of a pro-active, preemptive measure, if they needed it we could begin that big lift that is moving thousands of human beings across the country.”
“Objection.”
“Overruled.”
KASH: “Normally, no. Normally the request would come in. But in this instance, the Secretary and I, along with others, felt this matter was important enough that we ordered the Secretary of the Army, after that authorization came in on January 3rd, to begin engagements with Mayor Bowser and the Capitol Police, who he had already been speaking to on other matters. We wanted to make them aware that the President had authorized 10-20,000 National Guard and we wanted to ask them if they had request, sort of a pro-active, preemptive measure, if they needed it we could begin that big lift that is moving thousands of human beings across the country.”
“And what is your understanding of why DOD is reluctant to deploy National Guard without a request from local authorities?”
KASH: “My understanding is, historically, how the department has operated is they do not deploy uniformed military officers into and around the United States without the appropriate legal authorities, because one of the bedrock principles of having a civilian charge of the military is that there is no military hijacking local governmental policies and powers. And, I think that’s the way, in my understanding, the Department of Defense has operated the National Guard, with that history in mind.”
KASH: “My understanding is, historically, how the department has operated is they do not deploy uniformed military officers into and around the United States without the appropriate legal authorities, because one of the bedrock principles of having a civilian charge of the military is that there is no military hijacking local governmental policies and powers. And, I think that’s the way, in my understanding, the Department of Defense has operated the National Guard, with that history in mind.”
“And if the local authorities explicitly tell the DOD that they don’t want the National Guard deployed, what would DOD’s reaction be?”
KASH: “We, under the advice of our General Counsel’s office and the White House counsel’s office along with other agencies and departments who all agree, that absent of requests, we would not move the National Guard process forward because we, or our lawyers, have the determination that based in history, law, and in precedent, that would not be an appropriate maneuver for the department to take, unilaterally.”
KASH: “We, under the advice of our General Counsel’s office and the White House counsel’s office along with other agencies and departments who all agree, that absent of requests, we would not move the National Guard process forward because we, or our lawyers, have the determination that based in history, law, and in precedent, that would not be an appropriate maneuver for the department to take, unilaterally.”
“So, the Secretary of the Army had reached out to local authorities both in the D.C. government and the U.S. Capitol Police. What was the response?”
KASH: “I’ll paraphrase but I think the documents have been made public, Mayor Bowser wrote a letter, approximately January 4th or 5th, declining further requests for National Guard services outside of the 346 National Guards already [inaudible]. As far as the Capitol Police goes, as was encapsulated in multiple timelines, as well as the testimonies of the Chiefs of the Capitol Police and the Capitol Police timeline itself, where the Sergeant at Arms declined the Chief of Police’s request for National Guard requests and thus those two were our cancers, as we understood it, the two governing authorities, as far as January 5th running into January 6th, on the timeline.”
KASH: “I’ll paraphrase but I think the documents have been made public, Mayor Bowser wrote a letter, approximately January 4th or 5th, declining further requests for National Guard services outside of the 346 National Guards already [inaudible]. As far as the Capitol Police goes, as was encapsulated in multiple timelines, as well as the testimonies of the Chiefs of the Capitol Police and the Capitol Police timeline itself, where the Sergeant at Arms declined the Chief of Police’s request for National Guard requests and thus those two were our cancers, as we understood it, the two governing authorities, as far as January 5th running into January 6th, on the timeline.”
“Can you put up Exhibit 1028, please? Mr. Patel, I would ask you if you recognize this letter?”
KASH: “I do.”
“And what is it?”
KASH: “It’s the letter I referenced from Mayor Bowser, I believe on January 5, [2021] to the Department of Defense, which she specifically stated, we would not be requesting any additional National Guardsmen and women, and that was her letter to us, and that was the declination of a request, and so we were on standby.”
KASH: “I do.”
“And what is it?”
KASH: “It’s the letter I referenced from Mayor Bowser, I believe on January 5, [2021] to the Department of Defense, which she specifically stated, we would not be requesting any additional National Guardsmen and women, and that was her letter to us, and that was the declination of a request, and so we were on standby.”
“Did there come a time where the local authorities asked that the National Guard troops be deployed?”
KASH: “When you say local authorities, can I just ask for clarification. Do you mean the mayor? Or [other] level agencies?”
“If that is an important distinction from your perspective, why don’t you explain what you mean.”
KASH: “Sure. We always listen to our operators in the field, our partners in the field, police officers, both at the Metropolitan Police Department and the Capitol Police Department. We’ve known these folks for a long time and have worked with them for decades. So we always have these personal relationships where we’re getting our own communications saying, and a lot of these folks had said, “We’d really like more National Guards associates,” but there’s a chain of command. And, as this letter speaks to the top of the chain of command. . . there was a declination by the commanding authorities, respectively, even though the will of the folks who were working on the ground was different.”
KASH: “When you say local authorities, can I just ask for clarification. Do you mean the mayor? Or [other] level agencies?”
“If that is an important distinction from your perspective, why don’t you explain what you mean.”
KASH: “Sure. We always listen to our operators in the field, our partners in the field, police officers, both at the Metropolitan Police Department and the Capitol Police Department. We’ve known these folks for a long time and have worked with them for decades. So we always have these personal relationships where we’re getting our own communications saying, and a lot of these folks had said, “We’d really like more National Guards associates,” but there’s a chain of command. And, as this letter speaks to the top of the chain of command. . . there was a declination by the commanding authorities, respectively, even though the will of the folks who were working on the ground was different.”
@realDonaldTrump “Well, did there come a time where the commanding authorities for the D.C. local government, and/or the Capitol Police, requested National Guard support?
KASH: “It was on the afternoon of January 6, 2021…”
KASH: “It was on the afternoon of January 6, 2021…”
“Well, let’s put up that timeline, and you can point us to anything on there that you think is useful. Which timeline do you want, do you want the DOD timeline?”
KASH: “The DOD one. That is, not everything that happened, but some highlights that happened during the day, and you can see, specifically, at 14:22 in the afternoon, the Secretary of the Army had a phone call with Mayor Bowser and leadership to assess and discuss the current situation on the ground. There were no forthcoming requests at that time. Then, later in the afternoon, Mayor Bowser would make such a request. As soon as that request was made it was relayed back to the Office of the Secretary of Defense. But we had already preemptively delegated authorities to expedite the process, but what most people don’t understand is we can’t just have thousands of men and women ready immediately to deploy and employ and activate. Once we got that go, thankfully we had already staged [what] we could, so we probably cut the time down by half… and essentially what ended up happening was the fastest cold start of the U.S. military since WWII. We always wished to have done it faster. The timeline which we did it was pretty amazing, given what the men and women had to do on the ground.”
KASH: “The DOD one. That is, not everything that happened, but some highlights that happened during the day, and you can see, specifically, at 14:22 in the afternoon, the Secretary of the Army had a phone call with Mayor Bowser and leadership to assess and discuss the current situation on the ground. There were no forthcoming requests at that time. Then, later in the afternoon, Mayor Bowser would make such a request. As soon as that request was made it was relayed back to the Office of the Secretary of Defense. But we had already preemptively delegated authorities to expedite the process, but what most people don’t understand is we can’t just have thousands of men and women ready immediately to deploy and employ and activate. Once we got that go, thankfully we had already staged [what] we could, so we probably cut the time down by half… and essentially what ended up happening was the fastest cold start of the U.S. military since WWII. We always wished to have done it faster. The timeline which we did it was pretty amazing, given what the men and women had to do on the ground.”
“Some people now say that the National Guard should have been deployed earlier. Was any delay in deploying the National Guard attributable to, in your mind, a need for additional authority from President @realDonaldTrump?”
KASH: “No.”
“Why not?”
KASH: “The President only has a piece of it. We had that piece. And, as I said, we acted on that proactively. We went to the mayor, we went to the Capitol Police, we discussed the responses. We wish we got the requests earlier… things like no-climb fence structures could have been put in ahead of time. It’s important to remember that the head law enforcement authority of the day was the DOJ, not the Department of Defense. It should never be the Department of Defense, domestically. The Capitol Police could have installed no-climb fences. I don’t know why. Those questions have to be asked to them.”
KASH: “No.”
“Why not?”
KASH: “The President only has a piece of it. We had that piece. And, as I said, we acted on that proactively. We went to the mayor, we went to the Capitol Police, we discussed the responses. We wish we got the requests earlier… things like no-climb fence structures could have been put in ahead of time. It’s important to remember that the head law enforcement authority of the day was the DOJ, not the Department of Defense. It should never be the Department of Defense, domestically. The Capitol Police could have installed no-climb fences. I don’t know why. Those questions have to be asked to them.”
“Given President Trump’s statement to Acting Secretary of Defense Chris Miller the night before, that he should do what’s required to protect the American people, was there any doubt in your mind about what President Trump wanted done?”
“Objection.”
“Sustained.”
“Given that statement, were you uncertain of what needed to be done or what President @realDonaldTrump wanted done?”
KASH: “No, I knew exactly what needed to be done and we did it.”
“To your knowledge, was there any uncertainty among DOD leadership about what the President wanted done?”
KASH: “No.”
“Objection.”
“Sustained.”
“Given that statement, were you uncertain of what needed to be done or what President @realDonaldTrump wanted done?”
KASH: “No, I knew exactly what needed to be done and we did it.”
“To your knowledge, was there any uncertainty among DOD leadership about what the President wanted done?”
KASH: “No.”
“Did anyone in senior DOD leadership or anyone at all at DOD, to your knowledge, convey to the President, any request that afternoon for more, or additional authority or authorization or say there was a problem that required his attention to get National Guard troops deployed?”
KASH: “To my knowledge, no, but we wouldn’t have even done that, we had the 20,000 authorization, so anything inside of the numbers count for 20,000… Just to give you an example, the D.C. National Guard is comprised of 2,500 soldiers, give or take 50. So we would bring in the rest from other regions of the country. But, even the amount of soldiers we did get into Washington, D.C., it was the largest uniform occupation of D.C. since the Civil War so I don’t think we were going above 20,000.”
KASH: “To my knowledge, no, but we wouldn’t have even done that, we had the 20,000 authorization, so anything inside of the numbers count for 20,000… Just to give you an example, the D.C. National Guard is comprised of 2,500 soldiers, give or take 50. So we would bring in the rest from other regions of the country. But, even the amount of soldiers we did get into Washington, D.C., it was the largest uniform occupation of D.C. since the Civil War so I don’t think we were going above 20,000.”
“Did you testify before the January 6, 2021 select committee?”
KASH: “I did.”
“Were you questioned in a public hearing?”
KASH: “No, they declined my request for a public hearing.”
“What sort of hearing were you questioned in?”
KASH: “What we call closed-door, attorneys, members of the committee, and my counsel, that’s it.”
“Was your testimony public when it was given?”
KASH: “No.”
KASH: “I did.”
“Were you questioned in a public hearing?”
KASH: “No, they declined my request for a public hearing.”
“What sort of hearing were you questioned in?”
KASH: “What we call closed-door, attorneys, members of the committee, and my counsel, that’s it.”
“Was your testimony public when it was given?”
KASH: “No.”
@realDonaldTrump “Did you tell them what you told us today about the President and the deployment of National Guard troops?”
KASH: “I believe so.”
“Did the committee ever call you to testify about those issues in public session?”
KASH: “No.”
KASH: “I believe so.”
“Did the committee ever call you to testify about those issues in public session?”
KASH: “No.”
🚨 “Did you ever review the committee’s final report?”
KASH: “Yeah, in large part but I could not say I read every single page.”
“Did you look to see if you were mentioned in the report?”
KASH: “Me and my counsel had an agreement with the committee that my testimony, since I was the first to be subpoenaed by the January 6th committee, we felt it appropriate that the transcripts would be made public at some point. After months-long negotiations, they refused to do so. To my memory, they had me excluded. Our counsel took that up with the January 6 committee staff as to why the agreement had been violated. I think on the eve of the dissolution of the committee, my transcript was the last released.”
“I have no further questions.”
[END THREAD]
KASH: “Yeah, in large part but I could not say I read every single page.”
“Did you look to see if you were mentioned in the report?”
KASH: “Me and my counsel had an agreement with the committee that my testimony, since I was the first to be subpoenaed by the January 6th committee, we felt it appropriate that the transcripts would be made public at some point. After months-long negotiations, they refused to do so. To my memory, they had me excluded. Our counsel took that up with the January 6 committee staff as to why the agreement had been violated. I think on the eve of the dissolution of the committee, my transcript was the last released.”
“I have no further questions.”
[END THREAD]
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