Staff Reports
Whistleblowers from the National Guard accused top Army officials of lying about why the National Guard arrived late at the U.S. Capitol during the riot on Jan. 6, 2021. The witnesses expressed their concerns to a panel from the House Administration Committee that is looking into the investigation of the now-defunct Jan. 6 Select Committee.
The witnesses claimed that senior officers were more worried about how it would look if the National Guard got sent to the Capitol when supporters of former President Trump broke into the building. Capt. Timothy Nick and others testified that a review by the Department of Defense had incorrect information about the National Guard’s response to the riot.
Whistleblowers accuse senior Army officials of lying about National Guard response on Jan. 6https://t.co/Ybx9aYjOvc pic.twitter.com/EJvWcXBGGc
— The Washington Times (@WashTimes) April 18, 2024
Capt. Nick said that the review wrongly denied that some top army officials were on a call discussing the “optics” of sending the National Guard. He also said that the review tried to cover up the fact that the officials did not like how it would look if the National Guard got deployed. According to Capt. Nick, the Army officials recommended that the Secretary of the Army deny the request to deploy the National Guard to help the Capitol Police.
Chairman Barry Loudermilk disagreed with the Defense Department’s portrayal of Maj. Gen. William Walker, who was in charge of the National Guard’s response that day. He said that the Defense Department’s report stated that Maj. Gen. Walker got directions to deploy the National Guard twice, but Maj. Gen. Walker denies that these calls happened.
Col. Earl Matthews, former chief legal advisor for the D.C. National Guard, also criticized the Defense Department’s report and called some top Army officials “absolute and unmitigated liars.” He said that on the day of the riot, the Capitol Police Chief asked for the National Guard to be sent right away, but the Army officials rejected the request.
Capt. Nick also testified that the Army Secretary falsely claimed he was on a call and gave orders to deploy the National Guard. He said that the National Guard was told to wait for more than three hours before getting sent to Capitol Hill.
The top Democrat on the committee, Rep. Norma Torres, blamed former President Trump for not requesting the National Guard when the rioters got close to breaking into the Capitol. She said that as the riot happened, former President Trump did not call the Defense or Army Secretaries to ask about the National Guard’s whereabouts.
Several whistleblowers from the D.C. National Guard who were with Maj. Gen. Walker on Jan. 6 came forward to testify at the hearing. They were Col. Earl Matthews, Command Sgt. Major Michael Brooks, and Brig. Gen. Aaron Dean. They all criticized the Defense Department’s report and accused Army officials of lying about the National Guard’s delayed response.
The Washington Times tried reaching out to Lt. Gen. Flynn, Mr. McCarthy, and Mr. Piatt for their comments but did not hear back immediately.
