The US House Committee in Tuesday’s hearing aired previously unseen testimony describing just how wild former US President Donald Trump’s infamous late-night Oval Office meeting on December 18 was. It was earlier reported that Sidney Powell and Mike Flynn floated jaw-dropping ideas for overturning Trump’s 2020 loss, including appointing Powell a special counsel to probe voter fraud and seizing voting machines. 

Also read: What happened on December 18, 2020: ‘Craziest meeting of Trump presidency’

Taped testimony aired on Tuesday documented how the six-hour meeting devolved into personal insults and screaming.

White House lawyers Eric Herschmann and Pat Cipollone “showed nothing but contempt and disdain of the president,” Powell testified.

Also read: Trump’s ‘Be there, will be wild!’ tweet triggered Capitol attack: Jan 6 committee

Cipollone countered that Powell, Flynn, and Rudy Giuliani were verbally attacking them as they tried to ask “one simple question… where is the evidence?” Giuliani testified that he called the lawyers “pussies.”

Cassidy Hutchinson, then an aide to Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, sent a text to another aide to say the meeting was “UNHINGED.” She then took a photo of Meadows escorting Rudy “off-campus to make sure he didn’t wander back to the Mansion.”

Also read: Jan 6 hearings: Pat Cipollone ‘believed Donald Trump should’ve conceded’

The panel showed graphic and violent text messages and played videos of right-wing figures, including Alex Jones, and others laying out that Jan. 6 would be the day they fight for the president.

In vulgar and often racist language the messages beaming across the far-right forums planned for the big day that they said Trump was asking for in Washington. It would be a “red wedding,” said one, a reference to mass killing. “Bring handcuffs.”

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Several members of the US Capitol Police who fought the mob that day sat stone-faced in the front row of the committee room.

“The problem of politicians whipping up mob violence to destroy fair elections is the oldest domestic enemy of constitutional democracy,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., in opening remarks.

Also read: Jan 6 hearing: What is executive privilege?

Expected to testify in person was Jason Van Tatenhove, an ally of Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes. Another witness was to be Stephen Ayres, who pleaded guilty last month to disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building. He has said that on Jan. 2, 2021, he posted an image stating that Trump was “calling on us to come back to Washington on January 6th for a big protest.”

Also read: Eighth January 6 committee hearing may be rescheduled: Report

The committee is probing whether the extremist groups, including the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers and QAnon adherents who had rallied for Trump before, coordinated with White House allies for Jan. 6. The Oath Keepers have denied there was any plan to storm the Capitol.