White House records obtained by CBS News and the Washington Post show that Trump did not use his phone for more than seven hours on January 6, 2021 during the attack on the US Capitol, and the House select committee investigating the attacker examines whether he used a “burner phone” or a disposable personal telephone whose contacts could not be traced. In response, the former president said he had never heard of the phrase “light telephone”. “I have no idea what a burning phone is, as far as I know I have never even heard the term,” Trump said. National Security Adviser John Bolton listens to President Trump at the White House Oval Office on April 9, 2019. Getty Images However, Bolton said he and Trump have talked about how people used “cell phones” to avoid controlling their calls. White House documents show that no calls were made to or from Trump for seven hours and 37 minutes – as of 11:17 a.m. until 6:54 p.m. building, prompting lawmakers and Vice President Mike Pence to flee for safety. The 11 pages of the files – consisting of the president’s official daily diary and the White House call log – were sent from the National Archives earlier this year to a select parliamentary committee investigating the January 6 attack. Records show Trump was active on the phone for part of the day, documenting conversations he had with at least eight people that morning and 11 that night. The vacuum is also in stark contrast to the extensive public reports of telephone conversations he had with allies during the period under attack. A Trump spokesman said Trump had nothing to do with the files and had assumed that all his phone calls were recorded and retained. Caroline Linton contributed to this report.
Attack on the US Capitol
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Robert Costa is the Washington, DC-based chief election and campaign correspondent for CBS News.
